True Justice
by Valefar Upson
Summary: Slightly modified, but this is a story revolving around the characters of Code Geass and Death Note struggling to realize their goals in a very competitive world. With elements such as the detective L, the mysterious god of justice, Kira, the shadowy terrorist, Zero, the crushing might of Britannia, and countless others, this is not a fight of who will win, but who will survive?
1. Prologue

**Author's Note**

A few things of note: The story begins between the events of Code Geass episode six and seven, and the majority of characters have been adapted to the world of Code Geass. My reasoning for using the CG world is because it is a more unique setting. The world is more intricately crafted and there is a far wider cast at play here. Death Note characters are typically plot important, and being that the CG world is an adaptation of our world, it wouldn't be too difficult to adapt the Death Note characters as I intend to do. In any case, I will attempt to update one chapter every Thursday, but I am an inordinately busy person, so this may need to be altered occasionally, but I hope I won't need to deviate too much. As for major changes, I've decided that having Villetta remember that the person she met in Shinjuku was a student who had black hair, purple eyes, was fairly tall, and had a troupe of dead soldiers around him would be WAY too easy for L to figure out, so I've decided to give her plot amnesia. Other than that, I'm going to attempt to alter the CG world as little as possible. Please review if you think it is worth your time based on the story itself, and with no further ado, enjoy.

**Prologue**

"Jeremiah," Villetta whispered, standing at his side. The two were dressed in drab clothing, their security detail oblivious to where they were at the moment. They had double, and then triple, checked for any kind of wire tap or bug on their clothing or personal effects. All was requested by the man starting down the alleyway. They could tell he was a man, but other than that, it would be almost impossible. He was decked from head to toe in a huge trench coat and a hat pulled in front of his face.

"Are you sure we can trust him?"

"At this stage, this is the only way I can reclaim my status," the Margrave, Jeremiah Gottwald, said back to her, not looking away from the approaching man. "Our own pure bloods think I'm a disgrace, and the Princess is having me start from the ground up as a pilot. Capturing Zero is the only way to erase the stain of this . . . _orange_ business."

He said the word "orange" with as much malice as he could summon. Villetta only bowed her head and frowned in thought. She was Jeremiah's friend and wanted to see him reinstated to his old position of power, but at the same time, she feared he was so desperate right now that he might not be thinking clearly. In fact, she wasn't even certain how he had arranged for this meeting, but she supposed it was far too late to worry about that right now.

"Good evening," the man said, standing roughly five feet away from them.

"Are you Watari?" Jeremiah asked, lowering his voice. "What does the great L have to say?"

"Be calm, Jeremiah Gottwald," the man said evenly, retrieving from an inside pocket a laptop. He unfolded it and tapped a few keys.

"L is already on the move."

On the screen, a calligraphic L flickered into view. Then, through a voice filter, a voice greeted the two.

"Greetings, Mister Gottwald, Miss Nu. I, am L."

"Does this mean you've accepted my case?" Jeremiah asked quickly.

"Truth be told," L went on. "I had already begun investigating before you contacted me. This Zero is quite interesting to me."

"So what can you tell me, then?" he demanded. "How soon can I bring Zero to justice, and reclaim my honor!?"

"Please, remain calm," L retorted evenly. "There is no real reason to become so distressed. Zero may be difficult to catch, but I would hardly call him cautious. If now is alright, I would like to share my thoughts on the investigation with you."

"Yes!" Jeremiah answered gratefully without hesitation. "Of course!"

"Very good," L said in a tone so pleased with himself the two Britannians could almost hear the smirk on his face. "Well then, first of all: Zero is most likely a Britannian."

The two were surprised to find themselves gasping in shock at this incredible assumption so early on.

"What?" Jeremiah said, recoiling slightly. "How can you be so sure?"

"My reasoning is how infrequently he takes action. If Zero were an eleven, then he would most likely be conducting far more missions, operations and attacks than what he has done so far. If he were an eleven, he would have less to do than if he were a Britannian. Which also leads me to believe that his subordinates do not know his true identity, either."

"What makes you say that?" Villetta asked, her curiosity piqued.

"The Japan Liberation Front, the Blood of the Samurai Faction, the Yamashito Group. What do all these organizations have in common?" he asked. After a pause, he continued. "They are not in the public eye. Zero is attempting to gather support, hence his highly dramatic show regarding the Kururugi Trial. It is my opinion that only a Britannian would need to use the media as a way to gather support to his cause. If he were an eleven, there would be nothing to stop him from simply conducting battles the way the others have done so. At this stage, his staff is limited, and I would say it's almost certain that the Shinjuku Incident was his first ever time commanding the terrorists he later used for the Kururugi Trial."

"I see," Jeremiah said, frowning in thought, putting his thumb and forefinger to his chin. "Zero is trying to use his charisma rather than his lineage to attract followers. That would make sense, and it would also explain his sudden appearance, as well as why our current investigations have yielded so little. We've been looking for an eleven."

"The next thing I need to investigate will require both of you," he said, ignoring Jeremiah. The two looked slightly taken aback. "Miss Nu, you reported after the Shinjuku Incident that you had no idea how your Knightmare Frame was stolen from you, am I correct?"

"Yes, it's as I told my superiors," she stated.

"And Mister Gottwald, you claim to have no-,"

"I have no idea what ever the hell orange is meant to mean!" he shouted preemptively.

"If you would let me finish," L scolded through the laptop. "I was going to say, you claim to have no memory of anything regarding orange?"

Jeremiah suddenly looked confused. "What do you mean?"

"You claim not only to have no idea of what 'orange' could mean, but also any memory anything between the time that Zero accused you, and until after they had safely escaped. During that time, however, you seemed very complacent with Zero's request, to the point of military insubordination."

"Correct," Jeremiah said. "But what does that mean?"

"Miss Nu, do you know where your Frame was found once the operation was completed?"

"It was brought back to the Mobile Command Center," she answered.

"Yes, but did you know that many of the guards stationed in the Mobile Command Center have no memory of it ever being brought back?"

She flinched. "No, I didn't."

"Wouldn't it be interesting if your Frame had been taken by Zero, and he had used it to sneak right up to the Command Center?"

"That still doesn't explain how he managed to get in close enough with the Viceroy to kill him, though," Jeremiah chimed in.

"No, but it does explain much about Zero himself," L said with a sigh. "The pattern between all of those who have encountered Zero is memory loss and irregular behavior. For just one moment, I would like to entertain the idea that this Zero is somehow able to command people to follow his orders temporarily, and subjects of his brand of hypnotism lose all memories of the time they spent under his influence."

"That would explain it, actually," Villetta said, not looking up. "Right before my memory lapse, I remember seeing someone demanding me to give him my Knightmare. I refused him, but I never got a good look at him."

"Do you think you could remember one thing about him?" L asked. "This could very well lead us to our first grouping of suspects."

She thought hard, but sighed. "No, I'm sorry. Everything of that day was too difficult, I can't remember much before or after the blackout."

"That's alright," L said reassuringly. "There are still plenty of leads to follow up with. However, this does give me something very important."

"And that would be?" Jeremiah asked.

"That if Zero possessed a power as I mentioned before, it would mean that he needs to see his target in order to enact his command. If it didn't affect you until you left your Knightmare, then it would stand to reason that any form of blocking will suffice. In fact, it would seem that you saw him, meaning that it may well require him to see you. If this power of his is real, and I'm unlikely to admit such a thing, then there are many precautions we can take to prevent it from becoming too troubling in the future. My last bit of information I will share with you is this: catching Zero will be difficult, but catching one of his followers will be very easy, and it is almost certain that he has an informant within the Britannian ranks, and if he does not yet, he will soon. In the meantime, I would ask of you two things."

"What are they?" asked Jeremiah.

"For starters, I would ask that you keep this meeting and my involvement strictly between you two. And second, I would like to have access to any resources you can provide me with. I am very affluent, however, almost all things require government approval, and I intend to use the media to run a little . . . experiment with this Zero."

"I will help you how I can," Jeremiah replied. "But I must warn you, right now, that won't be very much. I have little in the way of actual resources since I was stripped of my old status."

"And what about you, Miss Nu?"

Villetta tensed. Jeremiah turned to her, his orange eyes pleading. She could tell that he needed her right now, but was she really prepared to risk her own standing with this. The purebloods were under scrutiny as it was, and if anyone was to find out about her being so involved with a private detective acting on her own without the military being informed, it might cost her more than an apology. She sighed.

"I won't guarantee anything," she said, closing her eyes. "But I'll see what I can do."

"That is all I ask," L replied calmly. "Now, to conclude, Watari will give you instructions and contact information for reaching me should you need to do so. I have already arranged to contact you in the most secret way possible using conventional communication, so I don't see that being a problem. We shall be in touch when I can uncover more information for the both of you."

"I see," Jeremiah nodded. "Thank you, L. I look forward to it."

"As do I," the voice responded. "And make no mistake: I will catch Zero. This is hardly the most difficult case I've accepted. Merely a strange one. At any rate, goodnight."

And with that, the computer went black. The man, Watari, closed the laptop, put it back into his jacket, and handed a tiny slip of paper to the two of them with his gloved hands.

"Once you are sure you won't need this to remember the instructions, destroy it, and make sure no one is able to copy it at all."

"Of course," Jeremiah said, accepting the card.

Without another pleasantry, Watari turned around and walked away down the dark alley.

"Jeremiah," Villetta began in a hushed tone when she was sure the man would not hear them. "Are you sure about this?"

"Yes I am," he responded confidently, not taking his eyes off the slowly disappearing frame of Watari. "L has solved every case he has ever investigated, and he's considered the greatest detective of all time. And even if I wasn't , what other choice do I have?"

"But his theory on Zero having some sort of supernatural power?" she pressed. "Surely you don't believe that."

"How else could you explain what happened to us?" he demanded, turning on her. "If anything, his saying that should confirm our suspicions! We are two of the most loyal servants of the Holy Britannian Empire in the entire military, and yet we turned on our brothers and sisters in arms because a terrorist told us to? And the memory loss is too specific for it to be coincidence, especially if multiple soldiers are corroborating this! Honestly, Villetta, the more I think about it, the more it actually makes sense! Yes, it's all coming together now!"

With that, he let out a relieved laugh, assured that he was neither crazy nor an insubordinate. Villetta, on the other hand, was not so assured about the former. She would need to keep an eye on this L, as well as her dear friend, lest he go too far in his hunt for Zero.


	2. Chapter 1

**Chapter One: Rebirth**

Light walked down the busy streets of the Tokyo Settlement, avoiding the plight of an eleven being mercilessly tormented in an alley by a few Britannians. He sighed.

_Just another day, I suppose_, he thought. _This world is truly rotten_.

He was fortunate he took after his father, and not his mother. Though he was a half-breed, he would be able to blend in with an average crowd of Britannians, and because he had been raised in such an environment, he spoke English fluently and without any accent, while still being able to speak a fair share of Japanese. However, very few people actually used that language anymore. Not since Japan had been gutted and renamed.

Light walked up the stairs and into the last class of the day, History of the Empire, where he was yet again forced to gaze out the window, bored and hoping something would alleviate the tedium of his life. Just as this thought crossed his mind, he spied something black simply fall from the sky. In the afternoon sun, he caught a glimpse of it. It appeared to be a black leather notebook, and in a silver scrawl on the front of it read: Death Note. Light arched an eyebrow in thought.

_Death Note? What, like a notebook of death?_ he pondered. After putting the thought from his mind, he went back to the autopilot that got him through his day, and the final bell sounded throughout the massive school.

"Attention, attention, attention!" the overly-enthusiastic voice of the Student Council President, Millie Ashford, screeched. "Hope everybody had a great day today, but not too much, because it's not over yet! After the brave rescue of our own highly un-athletic Lelouch by new Student Council member and super cool guy, Suzaku Kururugi, there will be a mandatory celebration in just a few days! I call it: the Catching of the Cat! Clever, huh? Anyway, make sure to stay prepared for this wonderful day, and remember:"

What followed was a loud, high pitched voice saying 'meow', as had happened earlier that day when the Council President had suspended all school activities to hunt for a cat.

_Honestly, the power possessed by the Student Council in this school is just absurd_, Light monologued internally, walking through the corridors. _And yet they do almost nothing but use it for personal gain or some stupid game or idea that is currently occupying them. Don't they realize there are actual problems that need solving?_

Light continued berating his peers within the confines of his mind, as he walked into the courtyard he had seen the notebook from earlier fall. Sure enough, there on the ground was a simple, black leather little notebook. Light, curiously, picked it up and opened it.

_The human whose name is written in this note shall die? How ridiculous. This has gotta be some kind of prank or joke. Like those chain letters. I'm not falling for it_, and with that, he put the notebook back on the ground, smiling at the slight distraction and walking away. But it only took a second for the memory of the world around to collide with him. And with it, his crushing boredom. He spun around, taking care nobody saw him behaving so stupidly, and stuffed the notebook into his backpack, walking through the streets to his house, casually hiding the Death Note inside a larger book, familiarizing himself with the seemingly endless rules within.

On his way, he spied an eleven woman being harassed by some thugs.

"Come on, babe," the lead guy said. "Nobody turns down Ricky George, am I right, boys?"

"Hell yeah, man," one of his friends chimed in with an oafish laugh. "She must be stupid or something!"

"Well, what else can you expect from elevens?" another shouted.

"Please," the woman begged quietly. "I don't have any money. Just leave me alone!"

"Y'hear that guys?" the man, Ricky George laughed. "This bitch don't have any money! Oh, well, you'll just have to pay me back in other ways."

Tears were flowing down her face as his friends grabbed her arms and held her in place.

"Bring her in that alley," Ricky George shouted, pointing to where he was referring to. Meanwhile, Light was staring intently at his watch.

35, 36, 37, 38, 39, 40.

He looked up and saw nothing happen. At first he sighed, produced his cellphone and was prepared to dial 911, when he heard a loud cry from the alley, followed by a thud and a few voices shouting.

"Ricky!?"

"Oh my god!"

"What the hell just happened?"

In just one second, the woman ran from the alley and away in the direction of a ghetto as quickly as she could. Light, meanwhile, stood slackjawed.

_There's no way I did that_, he thought, glancing down at the notebook, the name 'Ricky George' neatly printed on the first line of the notebook. _That has to be a coincidence; a notebook can't kill someone!_

Chalking it up to sheer coincidence, yet still slightly horrified by the prospect of it having been so eerily timed, he walked up into his room and switched on his TV to the news.

"-situation just seems to have gotten worse, as the perpetrator has just made demands for a helicopter and two thousand Britannia-bucks, and has stated that for every thirty minutes his demands are not met, he will kill one of his children hostages. The suspect is forty two year old, Kuro Atoharuga, he is an extremely dangerous man, and shows us just how degenerate and disgusting an eleven truly can be."

"Thank you for that report," the pretty blond news woman said. She continued giving more information about the suspect, and they flashed a picture of his face. Light frowned.

Once more. He opened the Death Note and raised his pen, quickly writing down the name of the man and looking at his face. He paused for a second, and decided to include 'suicide: shoots himself in the leg, and then the head'.

_It's pretty morbid_, he thought. _But if I really wanted to prove that this thing is real, I'll need some definitive proof._

He checked his desk clock.

35, 36, 37, 38, 39, 40.

He glanced up at the screen.

"More on this story as it develops," she concluded. "In the meantime, we now go to Diethard Reid for a special coverage of the masked terrorist calling himself Zero from just a few days ago. Mr. Reid believes that from certain angles, we'll be able to determine more about the terrorist based on his body lan-"

"I'm sorry to interrupt, Nancy," the reporter from earlier shouted, looking panicked. "But this has just taken a strange turn of events! We heard two gunshots from inside just a few seconds ago. We all feared the worst, but just now, we're seeing all the hostages fleeing out the front door. The teacher with the children from the daycare is saying that the suspect shot himself in the leg, and then the head, taking his own life. The police have moved in and are moments away from confirming - yes, yes it would appear that this is exactly what took place!"

"Well then, I think I sspeak for all on our team when I say I'm very thankful that it ended as peacefully as it did," the news woman said. "We can all rest easy knowing no Britannians were hurt today!"

"Indeed we can," the news reporter said with a smile. "I'm Grant Baldwin, signing off."

The woman went back to the story about Zero, but Light was far too concerned with what had just happened to truly care about any of that.

_The - the Death Note_, he thought, his eyes widening. _It works. It actually works!_

He felt all at once that he was going to throw up. He had just taken two human lives! How could he possibly live with himself?

_And besides_, he berated himself. _Who am I to pass judgement on others?_

He stopped to think about what he had just said, and suddenly, a new idea formed.

_No, no, wait, this is exactly what I've been thinking about lately. There really are some people who deserve to die, because frankly, the world cannot go on like this! Someone needs to be here to pass down judgement, and make the world safer and better for hardworking, kind, diligent people, not just the scum who get to hide in plain sight until we take away their freedom! And someone to fix the world? That's me. I'll do it. Using the Death Note, I will create a new world!_

And with that, Light flew to his computer, pulling up an international list of the worst criminals in the world. He glanced at the pictures of each and wrote their names, writing like a madman. In fact, it was all he had in him to not burst out laughing maniacally. Now, his life seemed to have a real purpose.

The next day was ordinary for the most part, but using the news and internet he was able to gather that all of the criminals who had suddenly and mysteriously died of heart attacks he had specified had done so, and the others, he figured, would not have been broadcasted. Now, whenever the Student Council or anything stupid like that happened, he could reassure himself that when he got home, he would be able to fix the world, one name at a time.

"Good afternoon, Ashford lovelies!" Millie chimed at the end of the day. "Just thought I'd remind you, the Catching of the Cat day celebration is just a few days away, so be prepared! Meeee-oooowww!"

_I wonder if I should kill her?_ Light thought with a macabre smile. _No, better not. That would probably draw the authorities to me._

Right now, no one was sure about how or why this was happening, but Light was certain that sooner or later, people would begin to suspect the presence of a higher being, passing righteous judgement down upon those who were rotting the world.

"Welcome home, Light," his mother chirped with a smile. "Can I get you anything?"

"No thanks, mom," he replied. "I'm really tired. Think I might just go to bed."

"Alright," she said. "Make sure to let me know if you need something, okay?"

"Sure, mom."

He opened, closed, and locked his door with a widening smile.

_I've already got everything I need right here._

"Wow, you've written quite a lot of names, haven't you?" a gravelly voice asked from behind him. Light turned and came face to face with a monster.

"Aaaah!" he shouted in panic, rearing backwards and tripping over his chair. "Wh-wh-,"

"I can see you're enjoying my notebook, huh?" the thing said, its crossed eyes looking nowhere in particular. It looked like some kind of . . . BDSM nightmare clown with irregularly thin and long arms. "Most humans are too terrified to do anything with a notebook, but you seem to have grown quite attached to it."

Light collected himself and sat up, fixing his tie. "Then, you must be a God of Death? Like the kind that's referred to in the rules of the Death Note, right?"

"That's correct," he said with a smile. "I am a shinigami, and I see my notebook found its way into the hands of someone very . . . interesting! In fact, I'd say it couldn't have - GAH! Are those apples?"

Without waiting for permission, the shinigami darted over to the bowl of apples Light kept on a table and began devouring them greedily, eating the core and stem without a moment's hesitation.

"So, I suppose that means you're here to collect my soul, is that right?" Light asked, standing up and fixing his chair.

"What on earth do you mean?" the creature asked. "That must be some silly myth you humans concocted. The truth is, I'm just here to watch. Other than that, I won't do a thing to you. Neither to help you, or to hurt you. I'm an observer."

Light took a deep breath in. "An observer who ate all of my apples."

"Oh, they're great! Apples from the human world are so, oh, what's the word? Juicy? Yeah, that sounds about right! Anyway, they're great!"

"And what should I call you?" Light asked it.

"Oh, my name's Ryuk," it said after scarfing down another apple. "What about you, human?"

"I'm Yagami. Light Yagami," he replied.

"Well then, Light Yagami," the creature, Ryuk, began. "Maybe you can explain to me why you've written so many names in the notebook. Do you really have that many enemies?"

He chuckled. "I guess you could say that. Now that I'm officially the God of Justice in this world, then by that logic, everyone who breaks a law, commits a crime, and harms the innocent is my enemy."

Ryuk only looked at him, making a confused sound.

"The truth is," Light said, pausing. "That my goal isn't to be an average student anymore. I suppose I've already accomplished that much, though. This notebook has given me the opportunity to create a new world, one of kindness and peace, without any wars or crime. And I will become . . . God of the new world!"

_Ooh_, thought Ryuk. _Things are certainly going to get interesting!_


	3. Chapter 2

**Chapter Two: Attack Cornelia**

The Tokyo Settlement seemed for all the world to be having an ordinary day. The traffic went on as expected, and people went from one place to another, blissfull and jubilant that their lives were being shielded from the terrifying elevens by their own, more terrifying Mobile Command Center and swarms of Knightmare Frames, pouring down the streets and towards a destination that most decided to give a pass for that day. It was just another ghetto, afterall.

"The Sitoma Ghetto is now completely surrounded," Andreas Darlton explained as his troops began taking up intricate battle positions and formations "The Yamato Alliance's hideout is located somewhere in here. About half the people in this neighborhood are cooperating with them, so if we proceed now-,"

"What will be the effect on production?" Cornelia asked, piercing violet eyes staring shrewdly at the mass of blue dots on the green map screen placed in front of her. Her faithful knight, Guilford standing dutifully to her side.

"Primary output production should decrease by zero point two percent."

"Within expectation, you mean?" she mused. After only a second of thought, she turned to face the other assembled men. "Alright. Now, all of you here participated in the Shinjuku Disaster, is that correct?"

The long-coat clad men put their hands over their hearts and bowed, the official sign of honor towards Britannian royalty.

"Yes," one answered. "And we are indebted to you, Princess Cornelia, for your mercy."

"That's not what I'm asking," she spat. "Do you think the conditions are similar? To those in Shinjuku?"

The men looked taken aback. "Erm," another piped up. "Yes, your Highness, I would say they are near identical. In terms of geography, things have changed, but most of the ghettos are formatted-"

"Perfect," Princess Cornelia said, pink hair bobbing as her smirk transformed into a gigantic smile, relishing the collision of battle to come. She nodded to Darlton.

"Do it."

He smiled and nodded. "Yes, your Highness. First group, move in!"

At this, a single team of soldiers charged forward towards a building where a gathering of elevens had appeared. They had come out to ask the meaning of the soldier's arrival, but when one of their own was brought down by sudden and unexpected gunfire, their intentions became all too apparent.

"Why would you do that?" a man screamed, glaring venomously at the soldiers. "Even children are here! We haven't done anything!"

"That's exactly the point," the soldier replied. "You fail to do anything against the terrorists who hide among you. You hide them, cover for them. That's treason against a suzerain state!"

The other masked men needed no further dialogue, and the crowd was eliminated posthumously.

"We're done sweeping away those in charge," Darlton said, turning back to look at his princess.

"Good," she answered evenly. "It's nearly time to set our plan into motion, then. So shall we begin?"

"Right!" he turned to a monitor and switched onto the main command terminal. "Attention all forces! Commence eradication of the Sitoma Ghetto! All forces, assume level one battlestations!"

At this, Knightmare Frames surged forward, aircrafts buzzed in from the sky, and conglomerations of soldiers marched forth, preparing to enact the will of their superiors.

"Suppression of Area 4 complete, eighth and eleventh mechanized companies are sweeping south in a pincer movement," an official stated simply, watching over a radar map and using live feed from aerial surveillance planes. Cornelia should have been happy. It was looking like a true victory. And yet, she frowned, wore an expecting face. Her real objective had yet to be reached.

_Where are you?_

* * *

"It's hopeless!"

"Can't we break through along the Saikyo line?"

"They've got armor blocking it! We can't use backroads, either!"

"Any reinforcements from Akabane, or Jujo?"

"One man might get through, but not a group!"

"Izumi!" a young man shouted, running into the decrepit makeshift command center.

"Damn, any word from the Tudou or Kawaguchi districts?" the man, Izumi, asked hopefully.

"Forget that!" the young man answered quickly. "Listen!"

He produced a walkie-talkie and handed it to Izumi. The little green light blinked on, and they all waited for a moment, holding their breath.

"This . . ." a very familiar voice said after a moment. "Is Zero."

"Zero?" Izumi said, shocked.

"I assume all of you have heard of the Shinjuku Incident," he said simply. "Do what I say and you will be saved."

The assembled leaders were too immediately engrossed in the communication relay being broadcast to notice that the boy who had brought the walkie talkie had a very different mannerism to his usual. On top of this, his eyes had a faint, red outline to them now.

* * *

Red dots vanished from the radar map as quickly as they had appeared, and blue dots dominated the landscape. Whole chunks of building and pieces of districts and areas were lit in red, and then vanished.

"B-12, suppression complete."

"F-7, no sign of the enemy."

"D-24, all clear."

"Paladin team, change course to 5-1-6," a commander chimed, clearing the command room of the noise of individuals and teams checking in.

"Yes, my lord," the man in command of the Paladin Team answered. "This guy Zero might turn out to be a no-show. Guess he's just another run-of-the-mill terrorist!"

No sooner had he said this than a loud explosion rattled the audio feed and two blue dots vanished from the screen. Cornelia smiled as even more blue dots began dissappearing, and red dots suddenly materialized, small, most likely inaccurate, yet present.

"Gester team, contact lost!"

"Enemies spotted in District G-4-7!"

"Gadzinski team engaging. They were ambushed."

"The enemy appears to be using Sutherlands, captured from our own forces!"

"Exactly the same as in Shinjuku," one of the military ministers whispered ruefully.

"Has there been any sign of Zero yet?" another one quipped.

Suddenly, a whole company was lost as an entire bridge was destroyed.

"Point 1-7 has fallen! Heli-team, contact lost!"

"That's enough," Cornelia said, almost nonchalantly. "Order all troops to fall back. Further casualties and losses serve no point."

"Fallback? With all due respect we can still fight them!" a minister interjected.

"We can't fight them like this," she said in a concerned voice.

"All forces! Fall back behind ghetto perimeter at once!" Darlton shouted over the command terminal. "Formation doesn't matter, fall back behind ghetto perimeter at once!"

* * *

Lelouch smiled triumphantly from within his captured Sutherland.

_What, no stomach for it?_ he mentally cajoled his older sister. _If I blend in with the retreating units, that'll put me right next to Cornelia. Have I cleared the task at hand already?_

Suppressing a malicious cackle, he deployed his Knightmare's long range scanner and surveyed the surrounding area. He detected a few units being deployed. They were quicker, more advanced, and had a more regal looking paint-job. Cornelia's royal guard.

_You're desperate, Cornelia!_ Lelouch thought wickedly. _Using your personal guard like this!_ He opted to end it once and for all, and pressed a single key on his customized command phone.

"This is Zero," he said into the receiver. "N-1 will reingage their IFF signal, operate as a Britannian unit."

"Understood," the man on the other end replied. _As my decoy_, he mentally added. Lelouch hung the phone up and awaited his plan to follow through. However, much to his surprise, the unit was immediately destroyed by her own guards.

"No confirmation?" he wouldn't admit it, but he was impressed by this both clever and callous move on the new Viceroy's part. "Well then, N-2, transmit signal and fall back to the hospital ruins. R-1, R-2, hold your positions and fire only if attacked!"

Any ordinary commander would have taken the bait and fallen into the ambush, but as the three additional blue dots on the radar revealed, Cornelia was no ordinary commander.

_They're not following!_ Zero realized all too late. "No, dammit! R-1, R-2, abort the ambush and fall back at once!"

He looked back down at the radar and adjusted his plans.

"P-2, N-3, circle around behind the enemy!" this should have put his units in a position to wipe out the detachment of Glowcasters Cornelia had just issued, but when no response came, he realized his plans might have yet again been foiled.

"What's wrong?" he demanded. Still, no answer was given. "Come in! P-2, N-3!"

Still nothing.

"Dammit!" he swore under his breath. "B-1, B-5, move in!"

"Like hell!" the former leader, Izumi grunted over the channel. "There's no way we can fight Cornelia's royal guard, that's a death sentence, I'm out!"

He ejected himself from the Frame, and Lelouch suddenly realized that he was not dealing with the same people he had been working with at Shinjuku. They had been desperate, and willing to die for their cause, but these cowards, now throwing down their weapons, abandoning their posts and bartering surrender with the enemy practically deserved to be mowed down by the unforgiving line of Britannian units. Now it was he, the mighty Zero's turn to feel desperate and disadvantaged, shouting into his command phone, attempting to establish what little control he had over his insubordinate subordinates.

"P-6, P-8, what's happening? Ugh, B-7, circle around and cover N-4!"

"This is B-7, I've got a prime target here!" Lelouch spotted the very same target on his screen and in seconds determined that it was a trap. "I'll take him out first!"

"No, hold fire," he shouted, attempting to preserve the few men he had. "That's a decoy! B-7 that's an order! They'll strike from above, do you hear me? B-7!"

The dot disappeared as another wiped it out.

"Idiot," he hissed. "B-8, this is Zero, I want a status report."

"Screw your status repor-AAAAAGH!"

"B-8? Damn. Anyone who's left in the P-group, report in, now."

Before he could confirm his suspicions that he was now alone, a tone sounded inside his Knightmare.

"Mission is complete," a calm feminine voice reported. "All forces take formation number four."

"Beaten this easily?" he growled, clutching the phone so hard he was sure he would break it. "But that's not how this game is supposed to go! This is what real organization can do."

"Attention all Knightmare pilots," came the imperious voice of Cornelia li Britannia. "Open your hatches and reveal your faces."

Lelouch felt his heart stop as he gasped for breath. All around him, soldiers were lining up as her royal guards began inspection, pilots sliding out of their hatches and having their identities confirmed.

_What do I do?_ Lelouch thought, mind racing for possible solutions. _If she gets me in a line up without my mask, my identity will be exposed! That can't happen! Use my geass? No, impossible! It'll only work if I can look directly at them! The enemy is protected by their Knightmares. That leaves the infantry and the other pilots. Ugh, forget it! There are too many of them. How do I turn this around? Show them I'm Zero, then use the power? Would that work? But the Knightmares! Maybe I can start shooting and break out of here? Impossible! Against Cornelia's royal guard? That would be suicide!_

"Open your hatch, it's your turn," a quick, demanding voice said, cutting through Lelouch's concentration. He paused.

"My . . . hatch was damaged in combat earlier," he said.

"I see," the man replied. At first, the exiled prince thought he might have gotten saved. "Well, turn around and we'll open it for you."

He gasped. There was no way around it. It all ended here.

"At once, sir."

"Zero's been sighted!"

Shocked, he looked into the monitor and realized that there, standing on the wreckage of what was once an appartment building, stood Zero.

"No way!" Lelouch gasped.

"Capture him!" the guard who had been moments from ruining all that Lelouch had been working so hard to accomplish ordered.

_I'll just have to play along_, Lelouch thought, joining the ranks and firing at Zero. Before any of them could land a hit, however, the man who was and yet was not him spread his arms wide and simply fell backwards, looking for all the world as if a gentle breeze had knocked him off his perch.

* * *

"Your highness, should we pursue him?" Guilford asked through the secure channel.

"Hmm," she paused in thought. "Is there any chance it's a trap?"

"There's always that possibility," Darlton replied. "Especially since we don't really know anything about this person. Aside from the fact that he appears to be as prideful as you suspected, Viceroy."

"Then there's no point in chasing him," she concluded in a blase tone.

"Correct," he said with a nod. "If he intentionally revealed himself directly to his enemy, he must have an escape route already in place."

"A fair assumption, Darlton," she agreed. "This may, on the outside appear to be a loss. We have failed to capture or kill Zero, and we've only really smashed a small dissident group a tenth the size of the previous one. But, in actuality, this has been a great victory."

She was speaking to no one in particular, but the primary channel was opened, so it was a safe assumption that she was addressing her forces, as if to reassure them that what they had done had been worth it.

"Zero has now had his pride hurt," she continued, savoring the idea of her new enemy wriggling under her superior military and tactical might. "And he lives entirely off of charisma. His terrorists are going to be less and less likely to obey him the more we defeat him, and as we have demonstrated today, this is no difficult task. Mark my words, Zero, if you're still listening, I'll end it all, just as quickly as you started it with the murder of my brother! All hail Britannia!"

Her forces took up the cheer, a few adding in "Long live Cornelia!". The ministers, knights, and commanders in the Command Center bowed before her as she sat back down, enjoying her victorious smirk.

* * *

"Why didn't we see any combat?" Jeremiah demanded to no one in particular. "We are among the top pilots in the entire military, and yet we stayed back, behind lines we knew were safe! Why would the princess do this?"

"That's obvious, isn't it?" Lord Kewel shot menacingly. "Because we've got Orange with us."

"How dare, you Lord Kewel!" he shot back. "I am not the enemy, Zero is! We should be pursuing him, not letting him run away!"

"Are you questioning the Viceroy's orders?" Kewel retorted. "Does your insubordination know any bounds, Gottwald?"

While the two pure bloods bickered, Villetta frowned in thought once again. L's words echoed in her mind.

"If Zero possesses such a power, then it is entirely possible that he would need to see his target in order to use its effects on them."

_If that were true, and Zero did have some supernatural ability that let him bend the wills of others, then it would surely explain this whole situation, wouldn't it? Zero was there, yet he was unable to touch the Viceroy or defeat her forces. Was it because the royal guard had been protected by the Knightmares?_

Beforehand, Cornelia had ordered this mission as priority level three secret, meaning it was to be kept quiet, but she was abundantly sure that Jeremiah would explain all that had happened to L as soon as he got an opportunity, and as much as she was unwilling to let herself be caught, she found herself equally interested to see what the detective could make of all that had happened.

* * *

L sat, slouching and chewing on his thumb.

_I need to think about this rationally_, he mused internally. F_irst, it goes without saying that whoever it was that Villetta Nu came in contact with on the day of the Shinjuku incident was most definitely Zero. The timeline of events is as follows:_

With that, he grabbed a marker and walked over to a table, only dimly illuminated from the glow of a computer screen. He perched himself into a chair, munched on a cookie and poured himself a little more coffee. He began writing on the table.

_May 7th, 2017 a.t.b., Villetta Nu is deployed in a battle in the Shinjuku Ghetto, where terrorists were believed to have stolen poison gas from a Britannian science-bureau. Villetta Nu meets an individual who commands her to give him her Sutherland. She refuses, and leaves the Knightmare to apprehend the individual. Then, she has a memory black out. During the battle, the enemy is somehow able to gain their own Knightmare Frames, and the commander of them manages to defeat Imperial Britannian forces. When Villetta comes to, her Knightmare is docked back at the Mobile Command Center. A few individuals report remembering it being returned, yet all of them report that nothing suspicious happened in regards to security being compromised. Prince Clovis is found dead, but only after he very uncharacteristically gives an order to retreat and provide aid to surviving elevens. This is his last act as Viceroy._

L made note of all that his mind was processing, taking in all details.

_Suzaku Kururugi, an honorary Britannian entrusted with the special Knightmare Frame, Lancelot, is suspected of killing the Prince, and is being transported to his trial, when a stupidly-dressed individual claiming to be the real culprit of Clovis' murder named Zero arrives with a staff of no more than two or three, and appears to possess the stolen poison gas, and uses it to hold an entire bridge of Britannians hostage. He then discredits Jeremiah Gottwald, acting Margrave of Area 11, saying that if he took any action to stop them from rescuing Suzaku Kururugi or their escape, he would go public with something called 'orange'. Gottwald claims to have no idea of what 'orange' means, and then he seems to exhibit the same memory lapse as Villetta Nu, however, he was still taking actions and cooperated with Zero's request, to the point of costing him his entire career. Despite the clean escape, Suzaku Kururugi still appears at his court martial._

L frowned. A new dot had just connected in his mind and a new theory was beginning to take form.

"Suzaku, Kururugi," he whispered contemplatively.

_Suzaku Kururugi appears at his court martial. When interrogated as to why he returned, he stated that Zero gave him the choice, and he chose to face the system. At first glance, it would appear that Zero only saved Kururugi to make a point and to gather support to his cause, yet letting Suzaku return would seem to contradict this. If Zero possessed some kind of power to control people, why not simply order Kururugi to stay. Or, at the very least, not return?_

He paused, attempting to work everything out.

_He had no problems using his power on something so mundane as obtaining a Knightmare, when with a power like that he could have just as easily forced all his enemies to kill themselves, or turn on their own like he did with Jeremiah Gottwald. Yet he's unwilling to control Kururugi. Am I to believe that he never had a chance to use his power? No, that doesn't make any sense. If he was able to control Jeremiah so quickly and without detection, if he had Kururugi alone for more than a few seconds, he could have easily given him a command, and it would have been followed. Perhaps he doesn't really have some power to control people? No, that seems to be the only logical explanation. And yet, how could something like that be logical?_

He shook his head and scribbled out the last bits, trying to keep his notes as concise as possible. He continued his internal investigation.

_I will need to test Zero in order to prove his powers, L thought. If I can create a situation where his only road to survival is to use whatever means necessary, I can determine how it is he's able to continuously baffle us the way he has been doing. In the mean time . . ._

"Ryuzaki," the unfiltered voice of Watari said after a small, mechanical beep. "Villetta Nu and Jeremiah Gottwald are attempting to contact you. Are you available?"

"Yes," he replied. "In fact, tell them they have very good timing."

"Understood."

There was a slight pause as the feed was swapped.

"L," Jeremiah Gottwald intoned. "What did Watari mean when he said "good timing"?"

"I have just reached a conclusion that I think can lead us one step close to discovering Zero's true identity," the detective replied.

"And that would be?" Jeremiah asked impatiently.

"In due time," he responded. "Anyway, I saw the news today. What exactly was this disturbance in the Sitoma Ghetto?"

"Just the man we're talking about," Jeremiah answered simply. "Zero was taking control of the Yamato Alliance terrorist group. Things seemed to be going the same as they did in Shinjuku, until Princess Cornelia managed to outmaneuver him and defeat his forces. In the end, Zero appeared in front of everyone and escaped using a hidden tunnel. We were unable to apprehend him."

"Hmm," L contemplated. _Something's not right there._ "Perhaps you should tell me more."

The two obliged, filling him in and supplying information and patching up questions where they could. By the end of it, between Villetta and Jeremiah, L was certain he now had a fairly correct grasp of what had happened.

"Well, then," L sighed. "This almost eliminates my need for a test. I would say that I am now, seventy eight percent sure that somehow this Zero has obtained an ability. An ability that is directly useless if he cannot see his opponent, or, perhaps, if they can't see him. I would also like to say that the Zero that made such a daring escape was not the real Zero."

"What makes you say that?" asked Villetta.

"Zero is theatrical yes, but he is also practical, and in this particular mission, he seemed to be far more reliant on conventional military action rather than the 'miracles' he's performed in the past with his unorthodox strategies. One of the first things Zero did was steal a Knightmare so he could use the radar to direct his troops. Like in Shinjuku. He intended to use the Frame to get close to the command center and kill the Viceroy. Like in Shinjuku. It's obvious enough that Cornelia created the situation as it panned out simply to prove that Zero could be beat, but Zero was already on the move to kill the Viceroy once again. I believe the real Zero was in a Knightmare, even when the other Zero made his escape. This was done to distract the military from discovering the real Zero in the line-up."

"So now there are two Zeroes?" Jeremiah demanded.

"That's unlikely," L answered quickly. "However, I'm not going to say that Zero is working alone. I believe he is working understaffed, being that this time he was working with different terrorists than those in Shinjuku. Zero has no set group that is his, meaning he has either severed ties with the first group, or he was attempting to be a leader of all Japanese insurgent groups, unifying them under one commander. Like an army. That's a very bold move. It is this that leads me to believe that Zero is only a piece of the puzzle."

The two on the other lines both arched their eyebrows in confusion. What puzzle? thought Villetta. What could that mean?

"Whoever is Zero is trying to do more than just cause terror and uprisings. He has more form and conduct than a typical commander. I believe if I can root out any and all possible leads regarding his fundamentalism, I can determine his identity. Other than that, I have nothing more for you."

"L," Jeremiah Gottwald whispered at first. "Can you do it? Can you really root out Zero?"

"Yes," he answered firmly. "His brand of justice is childish. He's fed up with the system and rather than try to fix it, he chooses a life of fighting and destruction instead. Such an individual is no hero, and we must show society that. Show them that we are united against another terror-mongering guerrilla."

He waited a moment for the two to process what he had said, then continued.

"Though . . . at any rate, I would like to go ahead with the next item on my agenda. How well do either of you know Suzaku Kururugi?"

"The eleven we were going to execute for the murder of Prince Clovis?" Jeremiah asked.

"He's in engineering now," Villetta interjected. "Isn't he?"

"Yes," Jeremiah agreed. "That's right. Working with that ridiculous Lloyd."

"Right, I'll just cut to it, then," L said. "I would like to place surveillance on Warrant Officer Kururugi. I have a team that can handle that, but I would like you to see to it that as little interference comes between my observing and his daily routine."

"What?" demanded Villetta suddenly. "You want to tail a member of the Britannian military?"

"He's an honorary Britannian," Jeremiah sighed exasperatedly.

"He's a soldier," Villetta retorted.

"He is most likely connected to Zero," L stated simply, ending all discussion. "Even if he is not working with Zero, he knows something crucial about this mysterious man, and I believe it is highly possible he may be in contact with the real Zero, whether he is aware of his alter ego or not, however, is yet to be determined. Either way, I would like to follow up on as many possible leads as I can, and right now, I would say I'm only ten percent sure Kururugi has anything to do with Zero."

"Personally, I find nothing wrong with it," Gottwald added haughtily. "I've never trusted that honorary Britannian. It wouldn't surprise me if he knew something about Zero."

"I won't do anything to harm your investigation," Villetta said impatiently. "But I certainly won't be helping with this. It goes too far in my opinion."

"I'm sorry you feel that way," L said plainly. "In any case, make sure to stay on your toes. Something tells me Zero will be making a move any time soon. In fact, given how great his loss was, I would say that it is almost a guarantee we'll be hearing from our masked friend within the next day or two."

"Very well, thank you, L."

And with that, the terminal was killed. L barely had a chance to turn around when suddenly the computer buzzed again, a calligraphic 'W' appearing. He sighed and pressed the communication button.

"Yes, Watari?"

"L, in regards to the other topic you asked me about, I checked as you suggested, and you were right. The recent surge in the deaths of criminals have all been reported of dying due to heart attacks."

L frowned and gritted his teeth. He had feared as much. "Thank you, Watari. Can you please contact Wedy and Aiber? I have a job for them."

"Of course."

The feed went dead.

_Damn_, he thought. _This many heart attacks, and all of them criminals? This is no coincidence. Someone or something out there is perpetrating the largest act of simultaneous mass murder in the history of mankind. And unlike the flamboyant enemy I have to catch right now, this new threat has decided to remain faceless._

The laptop once again began buzzing. A calligraphic 'W&A' appeared. He pressed the button and spoke into a microphone.

"Wedy, Aiber?"

"Yes?" they both answered.

"To further investigate this mysterious target of ours, I would like the two of you to tail and bug a potential key person. Because of this priority, I shall double the usual rates I pay either of you for the same amount of work I am requesting."

"Very well," said Aiber.

"That shouldn't be a problem," said Wedy.

"Why the priority pay-scale, if you don't mind my asking?" Aiber asked.

"Because this individual is an Honorary Britannian in the military engineering core."

"Wait," interjected Wedy. "You want me to spy on a soldier? Do you know what the military would do to an unaffiliated criminal like me?"

"The same thing they'd do to me," Aiber concluded gravely. "I don't know, Ryuzaki."

"I can guarantee that you will not be detected. I am working with individuals within the military, and they are agreeing to cover the surveillance. This may lead to the capture of Zero, and so I really must insist you help me."

There was a pause, but then a loud sigh.

"Alright," Wedy agreed. "I'll do it."

"That many figures? You can count me in, too."

"That's good," L said, his expression not changing at all.

"Who are we observing, then?" Aiber asked him.

He stopped to quickly send the both of them all the information Watari had been able to send him in the last few seconds, but really a photo was all they would need.

"Suzaku Kururugi."


	4. Chapter 3

**Chapter Three: The Black Knights**

"All bridges leading into the hotel with the exception of the main one have been destroyed," the formally clad military commander said, his gloved hands resting on a table-monitor, showing aerial and ground footage as he elaborated. "Our approaches from the air and water have so far been unsuccessful."

He turned to face the princess, who sat in her commander's chair with the regality of a tiger, preparing to pounce. Her men could tell this was a much more important issue than any previous ones to her. Swallowing hard, the man hoped to displease her as little as possible.

"There's only one route available that will allow us to establish a hostage rescue plan."

At this, she took notice, raising her head slightly, hope gleaming across her face in subtle, yet detectable amounts.

"The main utility tunnel running beneath the convention center of the hotel," he turned back and showed the three dimensional hotel outline and the tunnel that he was referring to in reference to their current position. "Basically, we would go in through this route, destroy the foundation block, and submerge the hotel. Since the tunnel was also built to handle supply routes, it should be able to accommodate Sutherlands. They've been using sub-standard weaponry, so we should have no trouble evading them."

Everything seemed to go exactly according to plan. They had no radar, so they could not monitor the progress of the troops as they could in normal battles, but a man sat by at a monitor with a headset clamped to his ear. After a few seconds, he gasped and tore it from his ears.

"Sir, they've been wiped out!"

"Wiped out?" Darlton hollered, furious at the continued failure of the supposed greatest military in the world.

"It looks as if they've modified a Glasgow into a linear cannon!" he said, scanning the feeds from the now destroyed Sutherland commander.

"What do we do now?" the military leader gasped. "If we release the political hostages as they've demanded-,"

"We can't show weakness to terrorists!" Cornelia shouted, the idea as far from her as was possible.

Guilford, standing nearby, bent low and whispered: "But Princess Euphemia, she's . . ."

He did not need to finish his statement. "Yes, I know," she growled, frowning in frustration.

"Thus far it appears that none of them have discovered that fact," Darlton, knowing immediately what Guilford had said responded, attempting to salvage what little standing they had in the situation. "If they discover Princess Euphemia is among the hostages, they will most definitely use her as a bargaining chip. She went there just to observe, therefore she isn't registered among the other guests."

Damn, Cornelia raged inside. Why? Those bastards have not only halted the dividing of precious Sakuradite to the assembled dignitaries of import, but have also captured her! I can't do anything, yet I can't do nothing. What do I do, Euphie?

She bit her lip in anguish and rose from her seat, walking away and down a hallway.

"Darlton, Guilford," she called over her shoulder. "Come with me. I'm going to think about this somewhere else, and I'll need your opinions."

"Yes, your Highness," the two answered simultaneously, following their princess out.

* * *

The Lake Kawaguchi Hotel truly was in a beautiful location. At the base of Mount Fuji and in the midst of a lake, the area surrounding was lush, rich, and scenic. Birds chirped and out on the pristine, still waters of the lake, one could occasionally hear a fish leap out of the water and plunge back in. Disturbing this beautiful setting was the massive dark truck inherent with the Special Corps. In front of it and on the bank of the lake, Miss Cecil and Suzaku Kururugi stood, looking at the hotel. Lloyd Asplund, meanwhile, was sitting nonchalantly on the grass, skipping small stones he found in the grass.

"Isn't there anything the Special Corps can do?" Suzaku asked, keeping the panic from his voice and attempting to remain as even as the undisturbed water.

"I've already asked them, but we're an irregular unit, and they don't even acknowledge our chain of command," Lloyd said flatly. "And besides . . ."

He didn't need to finish his sentence and opted merely to skip a stone, causing small ripples to flow freely from the tiny projectile.

"It's too risky to trust the operation to an eleven, right?" Suzaku asked, clenching his fists.

"Yep," Lloyd answered, almost quizzically enjoying Suzaku's frustration. "I'm sure you're aware that Princess Cornelia is very discriminating against Britannians and numbers."

"So the Japanese aren't even accepted into your structure?" Suzaku demanded, his tensions and annoyance mounting.

"If that were true, then what point would there be for an Honorary Britannian system in the first place?" Cecil mused.

The three relapsed into silence and sat around, awaiting something, anything to happen. However, they weren't the only ones. Sitting behind them by about twenty meters behind a bush and a tree, sipping coffee idly on her motorcycle was Wedy, who had a small listening device inserted in her ear. She had placed a high functioning wiretap on the outside of their vehicle, virtually undetectable, and was hoping soon her mission would turn into an interesting one. She sighed in boredom as even more nothing took place and produced her phone, dialling the secure number to contact her employer.

After a brief moment, she heard the other line go live. "Yes?"

"Ryuzaki," she said with a sigh. "So far nothing has happened, and Suzaku Kururugi has little to do with anything as I've seen. Our intel on him was right, but all I can report right now is that he's idealistic, opinionated, and he may have a few friends from Ashford Academy caught up in the kidnappings."

"I see," L said contemplatively on the other line. "In any case, stay on him, but don't compromise yourself in anyway. For such a small percentage, I would hate to lose you for carelessness."

She snorted indignantly. "I'm so glad you have faith in me! Fine, I'll keep on it and contact you if anything develops."

"Thank you," Ryuzaki said through the phone. "Please do so."

With that, the line went dead.

Wedy turned back to her coffee and sighed again, unwilling to let the tedium of her very well paying job get to her more than it already was.

* * *

"Where do you want this?" one of the men asked him.

"Um," Ohgi grunted for a moment, trying to determine where in this strange new hideout they could even put anything new. "Over there, by the driver's seat."

Tamaki loudly asked from across the room where he should "throw these damn boxes!", while Kallen sorted through the contents of one. She was surprised when she found not grenades, not guns, not stolen plans or even a pinched military laptop, but heavy black fabric. While she wondered briefly what purpose terrorists could have for fashion, her attention was diverted to the small computer on which Zero sat viewing the rising hostage situation.

"She was only sightseeing!" a distraught father shouted. "Shirley is still a student, but these criminals act indiscriminately! Savages! I want to know if Shir-I want to know if my daughter is alright!"

_We need to organize before we fight them again_, Lelouch rationalized. I_t's too soon, though, we're not ready! But we can't just sit here and do nothing, either. Knowing Cornelia, she won't hesitate to sacrifice the hostages. Then why doesn't she make her move? Is it the Sakuradite ministers? No, she wouldn't hesitate on them either. There's only one person that would stay her hand . . ._

"Zero," the soft voice of Kallen interrupted, as she walked in slowly to the room. "What will happen to the hostages?"

Zero pressed a button, muting the screen.

"Eventually," he said, not turning around. "There will be no reason to keep those Britannians alive."

"Yeah," she said, supressing a potential sob and hugging the pillow she brought with her closer to her chest. "I guess you're right."

Just then, the door slid open again, and Ohgi walked in with a box with the strange uniforms in his arms.

"Hey, Zero, I found these," he said simply, walking past Kallen and directly behind the chair their oddly dressed leader sat in. "Should I hand them out to everyone? I mean, as far as gear goes, it's pretty hip, but . . . we're just a resistance group, so-,"

"Wrong," Zero said quickly, turning to face Ohgi in the chair. This sudden interruption made the other man flinch slightly. "We are not a resistance group, is that clear?"

"Well then," began the baffled Ohgi. "What are we?"

Zero pulled himself out of the chair and tucked his arm inside his cape.

"What we are," he said. "And what we are trying to be, are knights for justice!"

"Knights?" Kallen repeated, unsure of what to interperet this to mean.

"Knights?" Ohgi seemed a bit more incredulous. "That's a pretty bold claim to make, Zero. I mean, we've only beaten them once, and most of the other groups and factions are saying that was just dumb luck."

"Dumb luck, or a miracle?" Zero posed. "They seem very close when they occur, and some will say one or the other. But few realize that what happened in Shinjuku was neither. What happened there was the perfect fusion of tactics, strategy, and dedication. Through my leadership and your dedication, many more miracles are to follow, wrought by the hard work we are willing to sacrifice for our cause!"

"Erm, yeah, I suppose so," Ohgi said, brightening slightly. Kallen smiled. She wasn't sure about the others, but at that point, she truly believed that throwing in with Zero was one of the best things her group could have done.

* * *

"What have we reached in the negotiations?" Cornelia asked one of her ministers.

"So far nothing, your highness," he replied with a bow. "The JLF is too proud to back down from its initial demands, and we cannot agree with them. They are presently unaware of Princess Euphemia's identity, but if we leave it for a few more hours, they will grow suspicious as to why we haven't acted yet."

"Hmm . . ." Cornelia let herself trail off. "We can't make a move right now. Perhaps we can try to send an envoy in? No, that's far too much delegation with them. Perhaps we-"

Before she could finish her sentence, the perpetrator of this act, Kusakabe of the Japan Liberation Front, appeared on the screen.

"Princess Cornelia," he said, a hint of anger in his voice. "Because of your inhibitions at anything resembling diplomacy, we of the JLF have decided to take action! Behold what your hesitation has yielded your people!"

As he said this, the feed switched to the roof of the hotel, being held by one of the terrorists. Another uniformed dissident prodded a blindfolded, white-dressed man with his rifle.

"Don't do it," the man said quietly. "Please, I've done nothing wrong."

"Insolent Britannian!" the soldier barked. "It is you people that oppress and ravage our nation and our people! We punish you the way you punish us, and you want to talk about wrong?"

"Release that man!" Cornelia shouted, not rising from her seat.

"If you insist," one of the terrorists laughed maliciously. With a deft smack from the flat of his weapon, he sent the Britannian tourist plummetting to his death. The assembled Britannian dignitaries and military commanders gasped in shock. The feed switched back to Kusakabe.

"Our demands have gone unanswered," he said, his eyes glaring daggers and his tone steely. "Therefore, we will throw one hostage from the roof every thirty minutes until our terms are met. I hope for the sake of the hostages that negotiations are in good faith."

The feed ended suddenly. Cornelia snarled in frustration and propelled herself to her feet. She charged from the command deck in an furious stupor, two mechanical doors swinging open. Dutifully, Guilford and Darlton followed her out.

"This is their warning? Barbarians!" Darlton chastised.

"For now," Guilford chimed. "We could negotiate to get the women and children out-,"

"Forget it!" Cornelia interrupted. "If we give into them only once we're simply legitimizing terrorism!"

"So we pursue forcive action?" Darlton asked.

"We would pursue that option after we secured Princess Euphemia's safety," Guilford answered.

"Viceroy!" a man shouted from the command deck, running in quickly. "It's Zero!"

The three stopped and spun around, facing the man quizzically.

"We've just received a message from Zero!"

"That man again?" Dartlon huffed.

"What does he want?" Cornelia demanded.

"He wants to parley with you," the man said. "Aside from that, we haven't been informed, but, Viceroy, he's on top of a Britannian news van!"

"What?" the three asked questioningly, curious what their strangest, yet somehow deadliest enemy was up to now.

* * *

Wedy, meanwhile, was simply munching on a biscotti, standing behind her mark like usual. They hadn't moved other than to unload the Lancelot, and nothing of note had happened, aside from the killing of the hostage. She had informed L about that, but still, not a move from Suzaku Kururugi. A little further down, she had also decided to bug the news crews, to make sure that information they had would be more fresh and unfiltered, being that their usual inside man, Jeremiah Gottwald, was not assigned to this mission. It was this move that may have saved her career.

"What?" someone on the other line, an older sounding man shouted, the sound of a reel and line being cast from a fishing rod. "What do you mean van three was stolen by Zero? What the hell was Gibson doing?"

"He said that when he realized what was happening it was too late," another, much meaker voice answered.

"Well where is van three now?" the first voice demanded.

"Driving straight toward the military," the second replied.

Wedy was sure they were just as confused as she was, as she replaced her sunglasses with binoculars and stared at the military parallel on the bridge. Sure enough, a Britannian News van was heading right for the military line, Zero standing proudly on top of it. Sutherlands appeared, pointing rifles at the masked terrorist, and blinding lights were put in his face.

"What the hell?" Wedy quickly got on her motorcycle and sped over as quickly as she could, hoping to catch the inevitably tense conversation that was about to happen. Knowing Zero, he must have something planned, and L could use anything to propel the investigation along. She revved the engine, urging the vehicle on, hoping to close the gap.

* * *

Everything is moving exactly as I've predicted so far, Lelouch thought quickly as Cornelia, flanked by two of her royal guards veered in front of and halting the stolen van. The pod opened and Cornelia stood out proudly, brandishing her gun-sword.

_Cornelia_, Zero thought contemptuously. _As much as I'd like to get you back right here and now, you're more useful to me alive. If you do what I predict, then I won't need to use my geass._

"Well, well, we meet again, Zero," she remarked whimsically. "Are you a member of the Japan Liberation Front? Or perhaps you intend to help us? Regardless, our concerns take priority over yours at the moment. And so, for the death of my half brother, Clovis, I'll take my revenge right here!"

She clicked the safety off the semi-impractical weapon and aimed it at her much hated adversary. Before she could do anything, however, Zero spoke.

"Cornelia! Which would you prefer? Clovis, who is dead? Or Euphemia, who is alive?"

Lelouch noted the sudden panic that stole across his sister's face as he mentioned the darling princess' name. _My suspicions are confirmed. You haven't changed, dear sister! You've always doted on sweet little Euphemia. That's why you won't take aggressive action, you're letting your emotions get in the way._

"It's within my power to save Euphemia for you," he continued, seeing her relax her aim on the gun. Beneath his mask, he smiled, knowing he had guaranteed their safe passage in. At first, Cornelia appeared to be frozen in her place, unable to come up with an idea or comeback. Finally, after a moment, she leaned over to her subordinates and whispered something to them.

"Very well, Zero," she said, sheathing her ranged/melee weapon. "Do not forget what you have promised me, and do not forget the struggle we have. It is not over, merely put aside for now. Once this is over, there's nothing you can do to stop me from tearing you limb from limb!"

"Such vulgarity is most unbecoming of a princess," Zero retorted slyly.

"A princess unlike any other," she retorted, but the time for talk had passed. Darlton gave the command and the van rolled forward, unopposed by the soldiers around it. Zero, unwavering, passed mere inches by Cornelia, who was doing everything she could to maintain her composure. The van drove past her and onto the bridge. When he was certain that Zero would be unable to hear them, Darlton leaned over and questioned his leader.

"Viceroy, what are we doing?"

"I believe that by letting Zero go in, we can buy some more time before the next hostage is executed," she answered, staring after the van. "So, this is our chance, we can hit both of them at the same time!"

* * *

Wedy knew she had missed the chance to overhear their conversation, and even if she hadn't, the soldiers would not have allowed her to get close enough, when suddenly her earpiece was set off as she heard Lloyd back at the lake shout something excitedly and laugh.

"They said you've got the green light, Lancelot! Your orders are to go into the tunnel and charge right into that linear cannon!"

Linear cannon? Wedy wondered. Will it help the investigation if Kururugi dies?

"Wait!" Miss Cecil shouted. "You mean they're going to use him as a decoy to make an opening for them?"

"Yup!" Lloyd answered with (far too much) enthusiasm. "Seems like they'll use the confusion to send in the royal guard!"

"Seems like?" she repeated in disbelief. "But Lloyd-,"

"Miss Cecil," the stoic voice of Kururugi came in faintly over the feed. "I'm ready! Please let me do it. If Lancelot and I are needed, and we're able to give the hostages an opportunity to be saved, even as a decoy, I'll do it!"

What followed was a series of machines whirring and clicking into position, and all parties went inside the van or into the Knightmare, making it impossible for her to hear. She retrieved her phone and dialed a familiar number.

"Yes?"

"Ryuzaki," she whispered. "Kururugi's getting sent in on a suicide mission, and Zero just stole a news van and used it to walk right into the hotel. What should I do?"

"Zero what?" L asked suddenly on the other line. "Please, spare no details. What is happening?"

She quickly filled her employer in on all she knew about the developing situation, and waited a moment for him to answer her.

"Stay in a place where you'll be able to monitor the military," he said after a pause. "I don't expect anything perfect, but I want you to look out for unexpected and unusual behavior in individuals. Please call me if anything develops."

"Got it," she answered, hanging up the line and throwing her motorcycle into drive, returning to the old spot she had, in the perfect position to watch the military, yet not close enough to be detected. As she did so, even she was brought to a smile at the thought of L working out the data she'd just given him.

_Things sure are getting interesting_, she thought with a grin.

* * *

"You have no intention of joining me?" Zero asked Kusakabe quizzically.

"Remove that mask and reveal your real face to us," the JLF leader said, equally as confident, holding his sword like a walking stick. "It's disrespectful not to!"

"I understand," Zero said knowingly. "But before I do, I'd like to ask you something: what exactly do you hope to accomplish with this action?"

"Gain attention," he said without a second to think about it. "I want this country and the people of the world to know that the Japanese aren't dead yet!"

"How stale," Zero said contemptuously, lowering his masked head in disgust. Kusakabe growled in agitation and glared at where he perceived Zero's eyes to be beneath the smooth exterior of the mask.

"You people are obsolete; there's no saving you."

"What did you say?" demanded a JLF soldier.

"Why you arrogant!" the other snarled, balling his fists and clutching the rifle he had closer to his body.

"Explain what you mean, Zero," Kusakabe said, attempting to keep his composure. A brief pause ensued, but then, Zero gave his answer.

"Attention? You want to gain attention by executing innocent civillians?"

"They are hardly innocent!" the leader retorted. "They are guilty of standing by idly in the persecution, extermination, and pacification of our people! They enable the beasts that devoured our nation and killed our brothers and sisters for generations! They are not innocent!"

"A civilian is not a perpetrator!" Zero yelled back, losing his temper. "You cannot judge them because they're a part of a larger, flawed system! Stooping to their level is truly ugly."

"They have already set the bar!" the bearded Japanese man hollered. "They have ruined everything and stripped us of our freedom! You, of all people should know, Zero! Join us, we Japanese can stand united, and stay strong!"

"That's just it, Kusakabe," he said sneakily. "I'm not Japanese."

"What!?" he demanded, the other two soldiers raising their weapons.

"Sir," a voice only Lelouch seemed to register sounded from the hallway. "We have a hostage here claiming to be Princess Euphemia!"

_Euphie?_ Lelouch thought momentarily, before his attention was drawn back to the JLF at present.

"Zero!" Kusakabe shouted, drawing his sword and running at the enemy terrorist. "There's no point in talking anymore!"

The other soldiers looked on in rage, urging their commander on to kill the costumed upstart sitting on the couch before them. Lelouch deftly slid the eye-slot open to allow his eye (affected with the power of Geass) to gaze upon the men.

"Die," he ordered. Not more than a second passed and the three agreed with him.

"Right, Zero."

"Yes, Zero."

"Of course."

The two shot themselves and Kusakabe stabbed himself through the center with his sword. The sound of gunshots alerted the soldiers outside. Zero quickly withdrew his pistol and aimed it at the door. A soldier bust in quickly.

"Colonel?" he shouted, then dropped, a bullet wound materializing in his shoulder.

"Zero," the man behind him hissed.

"Calm yourselves," Zero calmly stated, holding the gun level with the soldier standing behind the unmistakable Princess Euphemia. "The colonel and the others committed suicide when they realized how meaningless this operation was."

He then turned his attention to the other royal in the room. "Euphemia. You were willing to sacrifice yourself for the commoners. You haven't changed."

Her eyes widened at this. What did he mean?

The wounded soldier turned his attention to his comrades, ready to shout words of encouragement of taking down the snake who had killed their colonel, when he realized that they were all standing with their hands on their heads, and he came face to face with a group of black clad individuals holding machine guns.

"Why you stinking son of a bitch," he wheezed out, the soldiers advancing and moving them elsewhere.

"I heard that you're the Sub-Viceroy now, your highness," Zero said coldly. "Princess Euphemia li Britannia."

"It's not an appointment I'm happy with, the long, pink haired girl replied, attempting to sound as strong as the man she now faced.

"No," Zero replied, almost musing. "That's because Clovis was murdered. That was my handiwork. He begged pathetically for his life to the very end. He pleaded with the same tongue that ordered the deaths of elevens"

Euphemia could stomach no more. "So is that the reason why you killed my brother?" she demanded, her gaze hateful and blinking back tears.

"No."

"Then why?" she demanded.

"Because Clovis was an offspring of the Britannian Empire," he answered simply. Euphemia was made to ponder this as well, when a sudden chill crept up her spine.

"That reminds me," he said, raising his gun to her forehead. "You're one of his children, too, aren't you?"

That moment hung in the air for what felt like an eternity, when he lowered his gun. "No," he said. "Not yet. You are worth more to me alive for now. In that time, please go with my men with the other hostages. I promise no harm shall befall any of you, and you shall soon be reunited with your precious sister."

Euphemia kept her spiteful gaze turned to the man, even as a soldier gently walked her out of the room to the group of former captives that were being shoved into another area of the building. Suddenly, the entire building began to shake uncontrollably, and the sound of loud laser fire erupted in the air outside.

"Get the hostages on the boat!" Zero ordered. "Ohgi, get the camera set up! It's nearly time to make our debut."

"Right, Zero," the man, Ohgi, answered quickly. "Everybody, move that way to the escape boat! There's nothing dangerous here, so don't worry!"

The hostages and Princess, having no wherewithal to refuse, hustled to where the men and women with guns were pointing. Zero glanced out the window and saw, much to his surprise, an all-too familiar Knightmare Frame.

"The white knightmare from Shinjuku," he whispered in disbelief. The machine whirred and raised the massive energy weapon it carried at him. Unwilling to let something like that end it all now, Zero quickly pressed the trigger from within his coat and set off the C4 charges his men had placed earlier. The building began to sink and explode, glittering fire and sharp explosions rattling the weakening frame of the building and the world around them.

* * *

"Euphie!" Cornelia shrieked in a horrified voice upon seeing the explosion. No matter how far away she was, Wedy was sure that she would be able to hear both the explosion and Princess. She lowered her head in absolution, and raised the phone to her ear. The other line answered.

"Ryuzaki," she said before he could answer. "I don't know if you're watching the news, but I don't think-,"

"One moment, please," L answered. "Turn on the monitor on your motor-bike to Hi-TV, Britannian News."

Questioningly, she did, and realized that the camera feed was now being switched in static. At first, the picture was blurry, but the image of a boat, packed with the hostages and at the front, the Princess Euphemia began to move silently across the waters. At first, Wedy was relieved, but was not entirely certain about the situation.

"Wait, so does this mean-"

L shushed her. "Shh. I believe we're about to find out."

Sure enough, the feed stiched to Zero, standing impassively on a ledge on the hotel.

"My dear Britannians," he said, not a hint of hostility or sarcasm in his voice. "Have no fear, the hostages from the hotel are safe and sound."

The camera then moved to show many more hostages coming out after the boat in small orange safety rafts.

"I, Zero, return them to you unharmed," he continued reassuringly.

* * *

"Of all the brazen audacity!" Cornelia whispered angrily. "If we attack you, then they'll soon become your hostages, won't they?"

* * *

All at once, a series of industrial lights clicked on, illuminating Zero and his seven subordinates, each wearing a black uniform. and a black visor, sheilding the majority of their face, preventing them being recognized on television.

"People!" Zero called out. "Fear us, or rally behind us as you see fit! We, are the Black Knights!"

* * *

"Black Knights?" Cecil repeated in an interested voice.

"Ironic, don't you think?" Lloyd smiled. "The terrorists referring to themselves knights."

* * *

"We of the Black Knights stand for those who have no weapons to wield!" he went on. "Regardless of whether they be elevens, or Britannians! The Japan Liberation Front cowardly took innocent Britannian civilians hostage, and then mercilessly executed them! It was a wanton and meaningless act. Therefore, they have been punished."

* * *

As this was said, miles away at the JLF headquarters, Kyoshiro Tohdoh and his captains bowed their heads in shame, knowing well that the words he spoke were true. They had approved no such action, and Lt. Colonel Kusakabe had been acting on his own, yet the shame would now be theirs to bear.

_However_, Tohdoh thought, raising his head up. _This stain will be erased. I will see to it personally._

* * *

"Just as Viceroy Clovis was executed for ordering the slaughter of countless elevens, we could not stand by and let such cruelty be carried out," Zero said, pressing on into his speech, knowing that he was now addressing not only the viewers, but the Britannian Empire itself. He steeled his nerves and continued. "And so we made him pay for his actions! I will not repudiate battle on a fair, and level field, but neither will I tolerate a one-sided massacre of the weak by the strong!"

* * *

"You heard me right, I said let it run!" Diethard shouted through a phone from within his own news van. Jenkins, the man who had reported van three's theft earlier, sat at a monitor, keeping the broadcast moving.

"Liable?" he said after pausing for the individual on the other line to respond. "I'll be the one responsible for this!"

* * *

"The only ones who should kill," the filtered voice shouted from one of L's many TVs continued, filling his room with the sound. "Are those who are prepared to be killed!"

_Oh really, Zero?_ L thought with a smirk, sitting crouched in his hotel room. _I wonder if you're prepared to be killed, then?_

* * *

"Wherever oppressors abuse their power by attacking those who are powerless, we shall appear again!"

If Suzaku had been suspicious before, he was certainly confirmed now. Zero was beyond repenting. There was no hope for him. He knew that he would meet again, and in the end, he knew that he would prevail. That he must prevail.

"For the sake of true justice!" he said determinately, gritting his teeth.

* * *

Knights, for justice, huh? Kallen considered briefly.

"Those with power," Zero called out. "Fear us!"

* * *

Cornelia glared through slitted eyes at this. "Fear you? Not likely, you coward!"

* * *

"Those without it," he called, reaching his right hand out. "Rally behind us! We, the Black Knights, shall be the one to stand in judgement of this world!"

Lelouch, his speech complete, signalled the lights be killed, and the eight of them quickly spun on their heels, leaping from their places and into an escape boat, heading straight for the opposite shore, where their escape lay in wait. Zero knew that Cornelia wouldn't be able to scramble a team in time to catch them, and they would easily be able to head back to their lair.

Lelouch's smile could not have possibly gotten any bigger. So what if they were limited? So what if it would take incredible amounts of resources to build them up? So what if their next move might not be such a resounding success? After this, no one would be able to ignore him, and soon, the world would rally behind him. Afterall, he was now justice in the world.

* * *

"We, the Black Knights, shall be the one to stand in judgement of this world!"

The TV was paused quickly, allowing its owner to inspect the screen. The owner of the TV stood back, fists clenched and trembling, eyes wide with infuriated energy and practically bursting with manic underappreciation.

"Judgement?" he demanded. "How dare you! Damn you, Zero! You cannot claim something so lofty! Only one deserves to be the true voice of justice in the world, and it can hardly be one so imperfect and mortal as you! I am justice, and god of the new world I am creating by hand, and all who stand in the way of this god, they are the ones who impede justice!"

"Heh heh heh heh!" an extremely gravelly voice laughed. "Looks like that human is making quite the name for himself! Better watch out, or he'll give you a run for your money."

"Shut up, Ryuk," Light rebuked him quickly, calming himself enough to look over the black leather notebook. _Calm down, it doesn't do you anything getting so frustrated. On the positive side, this has bought me a little time to experiment with the Death Note, to the point where I'm a little more comfortable with it, and I'm much more equipped to deal with the police if they start to investigate. But this Zero . . . I can't have him going around like this, claiming to be justice. It's not right, especially not while I'm still here, righting actual wrongs, and cleansing this rotten world. But at the same time, I don't know if I'll be able to learn his real identity. Then again, do I really need to kill him?_

He smiled at this, and let out a small chuckle.

"Hey," Ryuk asked, not wanting to be left out of the loop. "What's so funny, Light?"

"Fine, Zero," he said, challenging the one who had challenged him. "I'll play. But you're so stuck in the public eye, you can't afford to take actions like me. You have two options, Zero. The first is to comply with me, yield to my power, and become the Hand Kira, using your little soldiers to enforce my will when the notebook cannot. But if you don't like that option, I suppose I can always resort to hunting down and killing you."


	5. Author's Dispatch

**Author's Dispatch**

I'm sorry to have to do this, but due to the crushing weight of the world around me - as well as other, less 'fan' fiction ideas of mine - I will need to take a short hiatus. I'll continue the story with chapter four next week Thursday as I have been, and to keep things running smoothly, I think I'll be implementing this. Every four chapters I'll be taking a week long break and continue uploading. Thank you for your cooperation and patience, and please know that this is not the end of the story and this is not me folding under pressure. Well, actually, I suppose it is in a way. In any case, new chapter next week and will continue on that path. The world gets less demanding next week continuing on.

Sincerely,

Me


	6. Chapter 4

**Chapter Four: Confrontation**

"The importance of this piece is beyond recognition in Britannian history!" the highly enthusiastic teacher squealed from behind her desk, chalk in hand and book opened to the part she was speaking of in front of her.

"Can anyone tell me what it was that Hemingway said of Twain most famously in 1934?"

When no response came, she sighed and placed her hands on her hips. "Anyone? Perhaps-"

"The Black Knights!" Kallen Stockfield suddenly shouted, standing up in her seat, somehow jolted out of what had been a peaceful sleep. The class paused to register what had happened, and then erupted in stifled laughter.

"Miss Stockfield!" the teacher shouted imperiously. "Perhaps you don't care about recieving a proper education, but I would be declared a charlatan if I were to allow you to rob your peers of such!"

"Erm, yes, ma'am," she groaned, sitting back down and rubbing her eyes, too groggy to understand the teacher's enigmatic speech. "I'm sorry, I won't do it again."

"I should hope not!" the teacher retorted through narrowed eyes. "Perhaps someone else could be so knowledge-indulgent? No one? Very well, Yagami, please answer my question."

"Right," Light said, turning his gaze from the window to his textbook. "All Britannian writing comes from that. There was nothing before. There has been nothing as good since."

"Thank you, Light," she smiled, and continued with her lesson. "What Hemingway means by this, is that Twain managed to properly write the true nature of racial subjugation, something that is a cornerstone to our society!"

The rest of the students began studiously copying down what the teacher wrote, but Light merely snorted quietly and looked back outside. Ryuk was floating around the room and looking over the shoulder of individuals, before finally returning to Light, who, much to his boredom, was simply staring out the window at the courtyard below.

Five minutes passed and the bell rang, releasing the students from their day. Light packed up and walked past another high-achiever from the school, Lelouch, who was very characteristically sleeping in class. Light smirked. He'd never say it, but he knew he was better than all of them. Both in academics, and in . . . other ways. Who among them was accomplishing what he was doing every day?

"I thought it would never end!" Ryuk groaned. "How do you do this everyday, it's so boring!"

He rubbed at his ancient joints, and realized Light had walked right past him.

"Hey! Where you going?"

He followed him out into the courtyard, taking up a usual position hovering over his shoulder.

"Light?" he growled. "Are you listening to me?"

"Don't talk to me," Light hissed back, moving his mouth as little as possible. "Unlike you, people can still hear me when I talk out loud."

"Ugh, aren't you boring!"

"Hey, what's up Light!" shouted someone he'd never particularly cared for. "The student council and us were just going to head down to the-,"

"Sorry, Rivalz," he said quickly, not even looking in the other student's direction. "But I'm really busy tonight."

"You don't have anything to do!" Ryuk retorted, switching shoulders to try and appear in Light's eyesight. "Aren't you just going to hang out in your room all night like usual?"

"What are you talking about?" Light shot back, volume controlled. "Of course I have something to do."

He came to a stop at the end of Ashford Academy and stared out into the Tokyo Settlement, and at all the people milling about, going on with their ordinary lives. He smiled wide.

"Yes, something very important."

* * *

"Look, Zero, things aren't going quite as you had planned," Ohgi said through the phone.

"I know that," their leader returned.

"Well then what should we do? Every time we try to crack down on the targets you suggest, they've already been taken care of through this mysterious Kira person!"

"Ohgi," the voice of Zero commanded. "Stop it. There is no Kira. Enemies without faces do not exist. True, I hide mine, but the mask is my representation. Kira does not exist. We simply need to focus our efforts more so on defeating Britannia."

Ohgi sighed. "Look, Zero," he said tentatively. "I know we're supposed to be the knights of justice, and defending the weak. But, we can't deny the fact that someone, or something already is!"

"I'll call you later."

With that, the line simply ended. Lelouch pocketed his phone and put it back into his inside pocket.

_I'm not willing to accept the existence of Kira_, he thought, putting a contemplative index finger and thumb to his face. _But the death of so many people, all of them criminals, and all of them of the same manner of death? No, that's no coincidence. Someone is doing this. Could they have a geass?_

"No," a bored voice intoned behind him. He spun around and saw C.C. plop down on his bed.

"I know what you're thinking," she continued. "And the answer is no. Whoever Kira is, they do not have a geass. Too many people are dying in so many locations of the world. I checked on it like you told me to, and there was one criminal who died in EU custody in Paris just a few seconds before someone in a Britannian homeland penitentiary died. Not only would it be impossible for someone to be in both places at once, but those were two highly secure prisons, and being there would simply be impossible."

"So," Lelouch trailed off, thinking. "What you're saying is whoever is doing this can not only kill scores of people at once with something as ordinary as a heart attack, and also not need to be present to do it?"

"That's what it appears to be," she nodded.

"Ugh," he growled, standing up and staring out the window, balling up his fists. "This is a disaster! The Black Knights can't do anything in the media, or we're simply recognizing this individual, and we can't challenge him, because doing so would be to challenge what people deem to justice!"

"But is it really justice?" C.C. asked.

"What do you mean?"

"Kira kills hundreds of people every day, and all of them criminals. But murder is still murder. What does Kira hope to accomplish?"

"Who cares?" Lelouch retorted, not looking away from the Ashford window. "His justice is much cleaner than mine! He only targets the violent, hateful people of society. He isn't focusing on Britannia, he has no grudge other than that against injustice. It's refined."

"But you want to make a nicer, safer world," C.C. responded. "You don't hope for power, glory, or anything like that. Not to mention you give the people a voice, and an anonymous mask to rally behind."

"Kira is more of a presence," Lelouch agreed. "Like a god."

* * *

"There was more violence across the city today," the news anchor said in a bored fashion. Light's eyes were glued to the screen as his hand worked furiously, writing down name after name.

"Another stabbing," he started. "This time in a crowded restaurant in the lower Tokyo Settlement."

Ryuk sat nearby idly, lounging on Light's bed, munching on a bright red apple.

"Hey, Light!" he shouted. "I'm talking to you!"

Without looking away, Light answered. "What do you want?"

"Why are you working so hard?" the Shinigami asked, sitting up and gesturing with the half-eaten apple.

"I can't afford to waste any time," he answered in a tired fashion. "I have a very small window to write names in the notebook. I only have from when I get home from school until I go to bed. I still need to sleep so I can maintain my average and remain at the top of the class. Obviously I can't be sleeping in class like Kallen or Lelouch. Plus, there's all the studying at home and at cram-school, I can't let myself get too tired. It'll start to affect my health and my mental performance. If I'm serious about trying to create an ideal world that is free from evil, I need to make the most of my time."

He was shocked out of his onslaught of slaughter when his sister, Saiyu, sounded from the other side of the door.

"Hey, Light, what's going on? How come your door's locked?"

"What is it?" he asked, turning around in his seat.

"Can you help me with my homework?"

"Uh," he groaned, trying to figure a little more time to write names in his notebook later to keep up appearances. "Yeah, sure."

He quickly took the ballpoint inkwell from inside a pen and used it to access the false bottom of the drawer he had created earlier that week. He did so with caution, to avoid setting the small cartridge of gasoline on fire, and hid the notebook. He got up, opened the door, and let his little sister in.

"We're doing quadratic equations in math," she said, holding her notebook out for him to see and walking into his room. "Sorry to interrupt, I know you're busy studying for school right now, but I'm like the only person in my class who doesn't get this stuff! Thanks so much!"

"No problem," he yawned.

She sat at the desk her older brother had been at moments ago, and Light deftly flicked the television off, leaning over her shoulder to help her out.

_Keeping up appearances_, he thought. _Exactly what will keep me from danger_.

* * *

"Prince Schneizel," a fat man with a monocle said, posturing wildly to his superior. "I'm afraid you were correct when you had us look into the recent surge in criminal fatalities. Not only are they being killed in such a rash and quick fashion all around the world, but all of them by heart attacks."

"Do you think it could be an individual, Bartley?" Schneizel asked through the wall-mounted video screen. "Like the project?"

"That doesn't appear to be the case," Bartley answered. "At least, none of our research shows anything could be capable of this."

"I suppose it doesn't matter what this project is, brother?" Cornelia asked.

"A mere hobby of mine, Cornelia," her older brother said with a sweet smile.

"What do you think this could be, then, Schneizel?" Odysseus asked from his own tele-broadcasted communications link. "We aren't seriously entertaining the idea of coincidence, are we?"

"That would be foolish," Guinevere retorted.

"Well then, maybe we shouldn't do anything about it!" Carnie said, clapping her hands in excitement. "Think about it! Someone else can kill all the bad people, and we don't have to worry about flak from other governments or terrorists!"

"Yes," Guinevere said smugly. "I've heard terrorists are becoming quite the problem for _some of us_, aren't they, Cornelia, dear?"

"Forget it," Cornelia shouted. "If this Kira does exist, then we're not going to let him go unpunished! The right to control life and death belongs solely to Britannia!"

"I agree, sister," Odysseus said, twiddling his thumbs. "But . . . what can we do?"

"We can stand and fight against this menace!" she retorted. Euphemia sat behind her, and while her role during these summits was usually to sit back quietly, she couldn't help but speak up.

"But how can we fight something we can't see?" she asked. "At least Zero is a man who is flesh and blood that we've seen. Kira is more like a presence."

"Keep out of this," Guinevere shouted haughtily. "You really think you have the right to speak on something as sophisticated as this?"

"Guinevere," Schneizel said menacingly. "Euphie is a princess, too. She has every right to speak if she should desire it. And, she's right. I'm curious as to how we'd oppose this force."

The thing about these conferences was that there was always one blank monitor in everyone's personal conference chamber, if only to allow guests or special or priority people into the going-ons of the council. This person always had to receive clearance from the entire council in order to get passed the best broadcast communications tech workers in the whole world. In this case, however, someone appeared to be able to give them a run for their money. The blank monitor began to buzz and hum, and static overrun the thing.

Cornelia turned to Euphie, Schneizel turned to Cannon, and the others turned to their confidants and began whispering about what was happening. After only a second or two, the monitor settled on a white background with a calligraphic 'L' appearing on the front.

"Greetings, members of the Britannian Imperial Family Security Council."

The voice was filtered, and Schneizel recognized it immediately.

"I know you," he said, maintaining his composure.

"I . . . am L."

* * *

"Geez, how could someone possibly connected to the illustrious Zero be so boring?" Aiber asked, tossing a tennis ball to Wedy, who caught it and returned it to him.

"Look at it this way," she said, clicking a button on the monitor nearby. "At least we're getting paid a boatload for simple surveillance."

The two of them were sitting in a large, silver surveillance van commonly referred to by them as The Watchdog. They were only using one monitor, and it was all audio, but they were simply listening in on Suzaku's conversations. So far today, he had gotten into an argument with his best friend Lelouch about the true nature of justice, and then he and his friends had all dressed up as cats. Seriously.

Now, the two of them were simply passing the time, reminiscing about old jobs and tossing a tennis ball back and forth idly.

"I wonder if Ryuzaki even cares about catching Zero anymore," Wedy said.

"What do you mean?" her partner asked.

"Well, right now he's addressing the Security Council about apprehending Kira, and it seems like the Black Knights haven't done a thing in a little over a week. Think we might just be tailing Suzaku because Ryuzaki doesn't want to think of something else for us?"

"Maybe," she answered, sighing heavily. She had hoped that they were actually being tasked with something important, but she too had been feeling L's attention shift. Zero was less a priority, but this new Kira case was far more his speed.

* * *

"The difficulty of this case lies in its unprecedented scope," L's filtered, ambiguous voice droned on, allowing people to prepare for the evidence he was about to reveal. "Make no mistake: we're witnessing an atrocious act of mass murder - one that is unforgivable. This case cannot be solved without the full cooperation of the Security Council, and therefore, you must make the decision to support the investigation. Whether private or public, either is fine. Also, I will require additional support from the Area 11 Viceroy, Cornelia."

"What?" Cornelia demanded. "Why Area 11?"

"Whether the guilty party is an individual or a group," he explained. "There is a strong possibility that they are elevens. And even if they're _not_, we can be sure they're _hiding_ in Area 11."

"And what is all this based on?" she growled, an angered bite in her tone.

"Why Area 11, you ask? I think I'll be able to provide you with proof of that after I directly confront the culprit."

"A direct confrontation?" Euphemia breathed.

"At any rate, I would like to set up the investigation headquarters in Area 11."

"This is ridiculous!" Guinivere shrieked. "Not only is this highly unorthodox, but this fool is claiming a rash of heart attacks on hundreds of thousands of people in secured prisons and all around the world are dying at the hands of mere men? I don't care how powerful they are, no one could pull that off without making some kind of disturbance!"

"I agree," laughed Carnie. "That's just silly!"

"I think we should hear L out," Schneizel stated. "What have we to lose? L, you said we don't have to support you publicly, correct?"

"Outside of Area 11, no," the huge black letter answered coolly.

"There, see, sister?" Odysseus said brightly. "We can remain neutral!"

"And what say you, Princess Cornelia?" L asked her. "You're the real peice of the puzzle here. Will you help me serve justice? Or, will you back down before Kira?"

"The nerve!" Guinevere raged quietly.

Princess Cornelia, on the other hand, said nothing, eyes glaring and brain working, trying desperately to come to a conclusion that was most favorable.

* * *

"Last night, in the West Tokyo Penitentiary, Naoki Uchiyama, originally sentenced to fifteen years for armed robbery was reported to have died at a sudden heart attack at the age of thirty two. This is only the most recent reported death in a steadily growing number of convicted criminals turning up dead by the same means."

"Ryuk! You should check this out!" Light said quietly, trying to hide his excitement. He hadn't been paying attention to the news, but online, something had caught his eye.

"Websites like this are popping up everywhere lately!" he said, bringing up the site.

"The Legend of Kira, the Savior?" Ryuk read inquisitively. "Huh. Sounds pretty cool! Is this about you?"

"Yeah," he confirmed. "I think they've taken 'kira' from the Britannian word 'killer'. Can't say I'm too happy about that, but . . . it looks like that's the name they've decided to give me. When I search the word 'Kira', I'm getting tons of sites just like that one. The media still hasn't picked up on it. They're still calling this a succession of unexplained deaths in the world's most hardened criminals. But, the people of the world can already sense that there's something happening! They know there's someone out there passing righteous judgement."

"Oh?" Ryuk asked, barely containing his laughter at just how interesting Light had become recently.

"Human beings are like that, Ryuk."

When he received a blank stare from the hulking monstrosity, he turned around in his chair, deciding now would be an appropriate time for a lecture about morality and philosophy.

"Although this would never happen in school, let's say students were asked to discuss whether bad people deserved to die. Well, you can bet everyone would give the politically correct answer."

Right then and there he could just imagine Shirley, or Rivalz, or even Lelouch standing up in class and saying: "It's just wrong to kill people!"

"Yes, that's what they'd say," he said matter-of-factly. "Of course, this is the correct answer, isn't it? Humans will always try to maintain appearances while they're in public, that's just how they are."

At this, he turned back around and brought the website from before back up.

"But this is what they really think," he smiled. "Most people are too worried to support me, afraid about how others would think. Most would rather deny my existence. But, on the internet, where you can remain anonymous, support for Kira is growing. Maybe people are afraid to say it out loud, but they all understand what's happening. Someone's making the bad guys disappear, one by one! Those who have done nothing wrong are cheering for Kira in their hearts, because they've done nothing wrong, while those who have _done_ wrong are on the run! They're forced to hide from an unknown enemy, this is how it should be! It's perfect - everything is going exactly as I planned!"

Suddenly, his television went to the emergency interruption screen, usually used by the government for announcements. On it, the anchor sat, shuffling papers.

"We'd, uh, like to apologize for the interruption. As of right now, a live, nationwide broadcast from Pendragon Imperial City."

"Ooh, what's this?" Ryuk asked, hunching over.

"We now take you live to Pendragon."

The screen flickered yet again, and sitting there, behind a desk was a man in a suit. A name tag in front read 'Lind L. Taylor'.

"I head up a national police task force, which heads up an investigation into these recent murders. I am Lind L. Taylor, otherwise known as L."

"What?" Light asked incredulously. "Who is this guy?"

* * *

"So this is how it all begins," Cornelia mused, watching the broadcast.

"Sister, I don't get it," Euphemia remarked, standing next to her older sister. "He's never actually shown his face before. Why would he chose to do it now?"

"It must mean he's taking this seriously," she answered.

_L_, she continued in her mind. _We've followed all your orders. Now it's time to prove what you said at the Security Council meeting. Prove you're worth backing._

* * *

"Criminals around the world are being murdered by a serial killer. I consider this crime to be the most atrocious act of murder in history. I will not rest until the person or persons responsible are brought to justice. Kira, I will hunt you down, I will find you."

"This guy seems pretty confident he'll catch you," Ryuk remarked.

"Hum. That fool. He'll never find me. He'll have to get this first, and as long as the police don't find it, there won't be any evidence to convict me, which means catching me will be absolutely impossible. I anticipated that the police would get involved and that something like this might happen."

"Kira," he continued. "I've got a pretty good idea what your motivation might be and I can guess what you hope to achieve. However, what you are doing right now is evil."

"You think I'm evil?" Light breathed quietly, his eyes taking a malicious gleam. "I am justice! I protect the innocent and those who fear evil. I'm the one who'd become the god of a new world that everyone desires! All those who'd oppose that god, they are the ones who're truly evil!"

He practically leapt forward and flipped open the Death Note, pen poised. He scratched the name of his new foe quickly down and glanced up at the television, a malicious look of triumph playing across his face.

"I guess you're just too stupid, L! Too bad. This could have been a lot more interesting if you'd only been a bit smarter. I'll show the world what happens when you cross me. The entire world is watching, L! Five more seconds. Four, three, two, one!"

And just like that, Lind L. Taylor clutched at his heart, gasped in pain, and collapsed onto the desk. The television went blank once again.

"What's wrong? You got nothing else to say?" he laughed viciously, gloating over his victory. Suddenly, the TV went from blank to the traditional 'L' screen, forcing him to catch his breath mid-laugh.

"I had to test this just in case but I, I've never thought it would actually happen," a filtered, ambiguous voice stated quickly. "Kira, it seems you can kill people without having to be there in person. I wouldn't have believed it if I hadn't just witnessed it. Listen to me, Kira. If you did indeed kill Lind L. Tailor, the man you just saw die on television, I should tell you that he was an inmate, whose execution was scheduled for today. That was not me."

Light was stuck, frustrated by the idea of being outwitted.

"The police arrested him in absolute secrecy, so you wouldn't have heard about him on TV or through the internet. It appears not even you have access to information about these types of criminals."

"Wow!" Ryuk laughed. "Looks like he got you there!"

"But I assure you, L _is_ real. I _do_ exist. Now try to kill _me_!"

"You . . . you bastard!" Light grunted through gritted teeth.

"What's wrong, go ahead!" he could practically hear the smug smile on his face. "Try to kill me? Can't you do it? Come on!"

Of course, nothing happened. Light could not do a thing to him.

"It appears you can't kill me," he finished after a few more taunts. "So there are some people you can't kill. You've given me a useful hint. Let me return the favor. I'll tell you something that I think you'll find interesting. Although this was announced as a worldwide broadcast, the truth is, we are only broadcasting in the Tokyo region of Japan. I had planned to broadcast this message around the world until we found you, but it looks like that won't be necessary. I now know where you are."

"Woah, this L guy is pretty good," Ryuk wheezed out. Light's eyes gleamed with malice.

"The police treated your first killing as an unrelated incident, but, in actuality, the first of your victims was a suspect in Tokyo. Of all the criminals that have recently died of heart attacks, this one's crime was by far the least serious. Furthermore, his crime was only ever reported inside Japan. I used that information to deduce this much: you are in Japan, and your first victim was little more than an experiment, which means that you haven't been killing for very long. We decided to broadcast in Tokyo first because of its large population, and luckily we found you. To be completely honest with you, I never expected that things would go this well, but it won't be too long now before I'm able to sentence you to death."

* * *

"L has certainly lived up to his reputation," said Euphemia, slightly taken aback by all that she had just heard.

"You're right," Cornelia nodded. "He proved that Kira exists, and that he is here, in Area 11."

* * *

"Naturally, I'm very interested to see how it is you _commit_ these murders, but I don't mind waiting a little bit longer. You can answer all of my questions when I catch you. Let's meet again soon, Kira."

Lelouch glared at the television that had once been playing on the screen. He, like all the others, had been highly skeptical at accepting the existence of someone or something passing judgement like that, but if he had any before, he was certain there was a Kira. This super-detective had made sure of it.

"Well, well," C.C. mused, lying on the bed. "It would appear that Kira is real."

"Indeed," Lelouch said with a nod. _But what does this mean? Can I trust Kira to stay out of my affairs? Then again, can Kira accomplish what I can? No! I offer stability, and a real presence. Kira is just an invisible hand, trying to guide people into a particular way of thinking. Kira is a nuisance, but this broadcast revealed an important thing to me. If Kira couldn't kill L, and didn't know the truth about Lind L. Taylor, then it means he only has access to what a civilian would know. He didn't know the real L's name. Or, maybe he only needs a face? Whatever the case, it's one or the other, and because the information on Taylor's being an inmate didn't seem to be a fact he knew, this can guarantee me that he will have no way of killing me, or my black knights, provided we take the necessary precautions. On top of that, he's in Japan. This L character is very good._

"And what about L?" C.C. asked.

Lelouch turned from the broadcast. "What about him?"

"Can you really trust Britannia hasn't been investigating you?"

"That thought had crossed my mind," he answered ponderously. "But for the moment, I think it's safe to say that L will be focusing on Kira. Kira has a much wider scope, and if L were investigating me, with the resources at the disposal of Britannia, there's no reason he wouldn't have caught me by now."

C.C. accepted this and rolled over, going to pick up the phone that Lelouch kept on his bedside table to order a pizza, when the young man's voice cut her off.

"However . . ." he began. "I can't have any of these people running around out there."

"What do you mean?" she asked.

"Britannia preys upon the weak like a monster," he explained. "Kira pretends to be a god of justice, yet kills thousands in the name of his own ambiguous dogma. And L seeks to solve perceived crimes, yet works with the most brutal dictatorship in the history of the world, attempting to stay in the light like it's just the right thing to do. His civic duty."

He practically spat the last bit out venomously as he realized just how rotten the world was.

* * *

Light was astonished. His mouth opened wide, his eyes huge, and his hand over his head. Realizing that he had been staring at static for the last several seconds, he composed himself, and gathered his thoughts.

"Really?" he goaded. "L's going to sentence _me_ to death? Sounds interesting! I accept your challenge, L. And you, Zero, will come later."

_Each of them has to hunt the other down while never giving away his identity_, Ryuk giggled in his mind. _And the first one who's true name and face is revealed will die! Humans are . . . so much fun!_

From his small room, Light growled the names of his two foes. L did the same from his hotel room, and Lelouch followed suit in his room, each one ending with their own personal mantra.

"I will hunt you down wherever you are hiding and I will eliminate you!"

"I am-,"

"I am-,"

"I am-,"

"Justice!"


	7. Chapter 5

**AUTHOR'S NOTE:** For all intents and purposes, the names of the Kira task force will not be changed, but their names will be considered Britannian. Total BS, I know, but these characters are memorable in both deed and name, so I'm making an exception to the realism rule I set myself.

* * *

**Chapter Five: Dealings**

C.C. stared up at the moon from the skylight. Her arms were at her side, and her lithe figure crammed into a student's swim suit. It looked for all the world as if she were trying to communicate with the moon. Then, suddenly, she threw her hands up into the air and leapt from the diving board, a few seconds later hitting the water. Lelouch sat nearby, not paying any attention to her and leafing through some work-related files on his laptop. He scrolled through applicant after applicant until he came to a strange thing. A Britannian man named Diethard Reid.

"What?" he asked audibly. "A Britannian? He looks too confident to be a spy. An extremist?"

"Isn't it wonderful how the number of recruits keep growing?" the long, green-haired girl asked, floating on her back and drifting lazily through the water.

"And it was simpler than I had expected," he retorted. "While I bitterly hate the Britannians, I refuse to condone terrorism. That would be the prevailing view of most elevens."

"Then basically, the elevens support the Black Knights."

"Which makes it easier for us to operate as a whole. It's a huge help that people don't report our activity to the Britannians. Plus, I heard some group called Kyoto was going to send us some Knightmares. The number of informants has been increasing, too. The Japanese can't resist jumping on the bandwagon. They hear a well grounded buzzword, and off they go!"

"Hence the 'Knights for Justice' act?" she asked, climbing out of the pool.

"Yeah, well everybody _loves_ a hero!" he claimed, practically laughing victoriously at that. "And what better hero than a knight? I kind of doubt that's what a _real_ knight for justice would say."

He laughed. "You think so?"

* * *

"Alright, let's start with the tip-line reports," Deputy Detective Suichiro Yagami commanded, attempting to look as official as possible for the pink haired princess Euphemia, sitting in on their meeting. This task force had been hand-picked by L, consisting of only fifty people. Princess Cornelia had given L the stipulation that a member of the royal family or an approved person must be present at all meetings in order for L to have Briannia's support, and at the moment, her sister was mobilizing forces to destroy remnants of the Japan Liberation Front. In addition to this, Euphemia had asked to be the supervisor of these meetings, if only give herself something to do.

"Yes sir," Detective Aizawa said, standing up. "Up till this point we've received 3,029 responses about the murders via telephone and email. Most of these have been curious citizens and prank-callers, but there were fourteen people who claimed to either know Kira, or have seen him. All cases were followed up on and properly documented, but no information could be provided that wasn't already publically known. And lastly, there were an additional twenty one people who claimed to _be_ Kira."

There was a pause. Yagami cast a worried glance at Euphemia, who was staring intently at the man reading from the report, her violet eyes focused. Yagami coughed purposefuly, signifying Aizawa to continue.

"We didn't want to rule anything out, so we followed standard procedure and created files for all twenty one of them."

"Uh-huh," Yagami nodded, glancing at his own report. "Alright, onto the victim reports."

"Yessir," another detective answered, standing up with his own file in hand. "Upon further investigation, we have discovered that all information of the heart attack victims was easily available in Japan immediately prior to their deaths. Also, concerning L's request to investigate the times of death, we found that all of them occured between the hours of four PM, and 2 AM on weekdays. Weekends and holidays appear to be the exception to this rule, as the times of death vary much more widely than during the week."

The glowing screen at the opposite end of the room spoke.

"That information is _extremely_ relevant for us," he said. "It suggests, that given the times of death, our suspect could very well be a student. Based on the fact that Kira's only killing criminals, I think it's safe to assume that he's driven by a very idealistic notion of justice. It's highly possible he may even aspire to be sort of god-like figure. We're dealing with an individual who has a very childish sense between right and wrong."

The whole room was frozen, waiting for the next revelation. Princess Euphemia had begun wringing her hands. _Oh, please_, she thought. _Not Suzaku! Don't put him under suspicion again! Just because he's an eleven!_

"Of course," L went on anti-climactically. "This is mere speculation at this point. But still, I recommend you further examine any suspicions you've had about the suspect being a student. We must consider every possibility. I believe that is the shortest way to finding and arresting Kira. Please, continue with the rest of your reports."

"Oh!" Yagami said, breaking out of his trance. "Right. Does anyone else have something they'd like to add?"

Matsuda raised his hand.

"Uh, yes sir."

"What is it, Matsuda?" Suichiro asked. Matsuda stood.

"Um . . . well, I'm not saying to support Kira or condone the murders," he began. "But, in the last few days, throughout the world, but especially here in Area 11, we've observed a dramatic decrease in the number of violent crimes committed."

Everyone in the room began looking around. Yagami folded his hands over his face and sighed deeply into them, not letting his subordinates see his thoughts.

"Um, well, I suppose that makes sense," he answered. "We'd suspected something like that would happen. Is there anything else?"

"Um, no, Chief," he replied, sitting back down.

"Well that about sums up our report for today," he nodded to Euphemia, then turned to the computer monitor at the back of the precinct. "L?"

"Thank you, everyone," the filtered voice responded. "I think we're one step closer to finding Kira. Before I go, I'm afraid I have one additional request to make. This is directed to the teams investigating the victims from TV news and internet. I'd like you to go back and look at the _exact_ way the victims information was made public. Please be as thorough as possible. In particular, I want to know for sure if photos were made available to the public in Area 11. I'll leave it to you."

The screen went blank, and the room suddenly became undone, the whole place abuzz with talking, questions, and loudly stated evening plans. Yagami turned to the Princess and bowed.

"Thank you, Princess," he said. "You've graced us with your presence."

"Don't even consider it," Euphemia stated forcefully. "If anyone needs thanking, it's you. You and the rest of your detectives doing everything you can to catch this monster. If anyone is truly deserving of merit, it's you."

Suichiro was stunned. "Erm, right! Well, uh, thank you, Princess Euphemia! And, Princess, shall I escort you to your car at the front door?"

"Of course," she responded with a smile. The two of them walked down the hallway, turning the corner. Matsuda was known for many things on the force. He was eager, optimistic, and compassionate. He was also considered to have the worst timing of anyone on the force or anyone they knew. So, naturally, as he saw his chief walking around the corner, he thought he was alone, and ran after him.

"Chief!" he shouted. "Wait!"

Yagami spun around quickly, and only now did Matsuda notice the princess. "What is it, Matusda?"

"I, erm, I uh," he stammered, then thrust the cup of coffee into Suichiro's hands. "Here, you looked like you could use one of these!"

"Ah," Yagami softened. "Thank you."

"Would you like one, Princess?" he blurted out.

Euphemia only smiled and gave a pleasant laugh. "No, thank you," she answered. "I should be returning to my sister soon, I'm needed for something."

"Ah, right!" Matsuda nodded quickly. "The busy work of a Britannian princess!"

She laughed. "Something like that!"

"And chief?" he ventured. "About what I said earlier at the meeting, well now that I think about it, um, I'm sure everyone already knew that. I wanted to apologize, and especially to you, Princess. I wouldn't want you to doubt my integrity."

"What on earth are you talking about?" both Princess and Chief asked at the same time. Yagami gasped and bowed back, allowing her to finish her sentiment.

"Nobody said it would be easy to speak the truth, but it had to be done," she continued. "Especially when it isn't something that's easy to say!"

Matsuda perked up. "Y-you mean it?"

"I do," she answered. "And I see what you're saying, too. My family is founded on the principle of the strong destroying the weak. This nation is founded on that. Yet still . . . the lives of the innocent should be protected, and as long as Kira is out there, operating, there will always be that threat. At any rate, keep up the good work, Chief Yagami, and you too, detective Matusda. I'll be going now."

She strolled out the door and into the limo that sat waiting for her. As it sped away, Matsuda turned to his chief.

"Do you think that too, Chief?"

"Yes," he nodded. "She surmized exactly what I had thought."

Matsuda let out a relieved sigh.

"However," his superior continued. "If you had gone as far as saying we should commend Kira for reducing the amounts of violent crime, then yes, I think I would have had a little provlem with that."

"Oh no!" Matsuda yelled, throwing up his hands defensively. "No, I wouldn't - that would never happen!"

Yagami let out a good-natured laugh. I'm just kidding!"

* * *

"You said you would be able to have Zero caught and awaiting execution by now!" Gottwald yelled into the phone in a back alley. "And yet, you seem to have made little to no progress in this so called investigation!"

"You say that Princess Cornelia is mobilizing troops today, correct? To advance on the Narita Mountain headquarters of the Japan Liberation Front?" the filtered voice of L asked coolly.

"Yes," he answered impatiently. "What of it?"

"I have a theory for you," he said. "One that will yield us our first clue as to the true identity of Zero."

"Oh?" Villetta asked, turned away from the conversation. The more she had thought about it, the more she had begun to resent this arrangement between her associate and this strange voice, gathering the animosity of not one, but two faceless enemies. There were far too many faceless people in the world right now for her to stomach.

"Yes," he responded. "Allow me to explain. I've had my suspicions that Kira is obtaining information from within the Britannian military, which would explain his sudden appearance at the Sitoma Ghetto incident. Today, if, during the attack, not only is Zero present, but he has created some kind of ambush or trap, I can be certain that he has an informant within the military. Not only that, but it would appear to me that Suzaku Kururgi is somehow affiliated with Zero, whether he knows it or not, which makes me think that Zero is either _in_ the military, or a student with Suzaku. Either way, I can be nearly sure that Zero is a Britannian."

"What?" Jeremiah gasped. "A Britannian?"

"Yes. Of course, this is just speculation, but so far, things do not seem to be adding up enough for it to point towards being an eleven. To recap, Zero is a Britannian man with an idealistic sense of justice, and is most active at nights, and on weekends. Can you guess who we're looking for?"

"A student," Villetta concluded.

"A Britannian student, eh?" Jeremiah said contemplatively. "I can't say that that's ideal, but dealing with Zero is the most important thing. If you're sure, then what do you need from me?"

"I need you to be on alert this weekend at Narita. Zero will most likely be there, and if so, then he's most likely created a trap or a diversion to throw you all off. His preogative is to kill Britannian royalty, so it would be most beneficial to protect Princess Cornelia more-so, being that she will be his first target. He'll attempt to isolate her, so do not allow her to be alone."

"Right, I see your point," Gottwald responded. "Then is that all?"

"For now," L responded. "Yes. I believe we are very close to finding Zero."

With that, the feed died. Jeremiah and Villetta got back into their car and drove off. Jeremiah was speaking excitedly as he always did after a meeting with L, no matter how frustrated he would find himself the next day, while Villetta began to believe that all that was happening was detrimental for her friend. But, back in his hotel room, L, after killing the feeds, sat back and thought about his next step.

_Catching Zero will be simple. I can trace his informant and match Zero activity with times where students have been missing. The _real _next step is Kira. Both of them most likely students. Hmm . . . I wonder._

* * *

Tonight was an odd night in the Yagami household. Light, Saiyu, and Sachiko were all surprised when Suichiro came home that night in time for dinner. Naturally, upon discovering Light's father was not only a detective, but the one heading up the Kira investigation under L, Ryuk laughed for quite a while.

"Well, well," he chided. "Daddy's a policeman! And that must be the reason why you're so confident?"

"That's right," Light said, typing on his computer. "It's easy for me to hack into dad's computer. We're on a home network, so I can copy the files I need without leaving a trace. This way I can keep track of the investigation."

With one last click, his screen was suddenly flooded with folder icons. He opened the most recent one and scanned it quickly. He sat back in his seat with a steaming cup of tea.

"Well, isn't that interesting?" he muttered. "The police are already beginning to suspect a student."

"Ha ha ha ha!" the shinigami laughed. "Sounds like you're in trouble!"

Light ignored this, and sat pondering for a moment. Then he put his cup down and folded his hands contemplatively over his mouth.

"If the cause of death is written within forty seconds of writing the person's name, it will happen," he said, reciting one of the hundreds of rules to the Death Note. "If the cause of death is not stated in that time, the person will simply die of a heart attack. After writing the cause of death, details of the death should be written within the next six minutes and forty seconds. That sound right to you, Ryuk?"

"What's your point?" Ryuk asked.

"In other words, if I right heart attack as the cause of death, then I should be able to write all the details including time of death afterwards, shouldn't I?"

The plan formulated, Light chuckled. "Looks like I might be able to provide you with some more entertainment, Ryuk!"

* * *

Lights flicked on all over the warehouse, and a Black Knight was so enthralled with what he saw he was literally stunned.

"Wow," he shouted. "It's amazing!"

Indeed it was, for here in a Black Knight controlled warehouse were row upon row of custom-made Knightmare Frames.

"Those are Glasgows, aren't they?"

"Burais," another supplied. "A Japanese modification."

"I've never seen these before!" a woman shouted happily.

"The Black Knights have got some serious muscle!" another person yelled.

"You know," another ventured. "It wasn't easy to sign up for the BK."

"That means we're special, right?" another laughed.

"Elite!"

"Those guys in Kyoto," one of Ohgi's original group said in a more hushed tone to his comrades. "They really believe in us. I mean, they sent us _this_!"

He was referring to a huge, red Knightmare, specially designed and modified with parts and plans from the Kyoto Group.

"A Gurren Mark II," Kallen sighed longingly.

"Heh-heh," Tamaki laughed. "I'm really liking this! The big shots in Kyoto are recognizing us - we've got their approval!"

"Tamak-san!" a new recruit shouted from the far end of the warehouse. "Could you show me how to use this equipment here?"

"Oh, sure!" he shouted. "Hang on!"

He ran off to help the pretty young Japanese woman struggling with a fuel pod and a welding rod.

"Newbies," laughed one of those standing near Kallen. "What are you gonna do?"

And with that, all but Kallen turned around to help where they were needed. The half-Britannian, half-11 stayed, however, glancing at the beautiful Knightmare in front of her.

"First Tamaki, now Inoway and the rest are all treating this like a party," the domineering voice of Zero stated, coming out of the shadows behind Kallen. "Kyoto is backing multiple resistance groups, is that correct?"

"Yes," Kallen said proudly, turning to face her leader. "Which means that we've made it in; we've finally gotten their approval! They think we're worthy!"

"No," Zero said, stopping her from continuing. "You're wrong there, Kallen. This is merely a test they've put to us."

"So what if it is?" she asked incredulously. "This is still incredible!"

"You're an optimist," Zero noted. Then, without another word of warning, tossed the keys to the Gurren Mark II to her. She caught it and stared intently at Zero.

"Mine?" she gasped. "But we have a lot more people now, and we can't afford to lose you! You need the Gurren's defense to protect you-"

"You're a top notch pilot," Zero concluded. "I'm a commander. I'll use a Burai, but you're our only ace to play during a battle. Besides, you have reason to fight."

She clutched the key determinately to her chest. "Right."

"Zero!" Ohgi shouted, approaching the masked man. "You got a second? We got some weird intel from a Britannian who wants to join the Black Knights."

Lelouch's eyes widened beneath his mask. _Is this that Diethard person?_

"This may be a trap to draw us out," Ohgi continued. "I'd say even if we wanted to confirm the information, it's too risky to contact him. But news like this isn't something we can just ignore. What should we do?"

Lelouch scanned the paper quickly. Cornelia was taking her forces to the Narita Mountains to ambush and destroy the remnants of the largest activist group left in Area 11, the Japan Liberation Front. The answer for the exiled prince took him less than a second to reach.

"This weekend we're going hiking," Zero said.

"What?" Ohgi stammered out.

"To the Narita Mountains."


	8. Author's Dispatch 2

**Author's Dispatch 2**

Once again, it appears that I've lied. I forgot that final testing is something I'd still have to do, and between work and that, the chapter just wasn't complete enough for today. I'm sorry and it'll be up by next week Thursday, as usual, and I would also like to note that I don't think this story will last until the R2 events of Code Geass, so this story may end very soon.

In addition to this, the more I write, the more I realize about the characters of Lelouch, Light, and L. This trio of soft consonants have created a very unique team, and if anyone is interested, I would love to write a thesis at the end of the story explaining what I find so enthralling about these characters.

Although, that might be me getting ahead of myself. Either way, I'm very sorry about this and hopefully I won't need to do it again. Please know that I don't do it because I've lost interest in the story, it's just that the real world takes precedence over the fictitious.

Sincerely,

Me


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